


The Runaway

by Despy



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-15
Updated: 2018-01-08
Packaged: 2018-09-17 18:16:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 53,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9337217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Despy/pseuds/Despy
Summary: Determined not to become a tavern wench, a girl named Toki decides to take her fate into her own hands. On the eve of her sixteenth birthday she disguises herself as a Fire Nation boy and runs away from everything she has ever known. After landing a job on an old warship, she is hoping to make it to the next port without incident, but fate had something different in mind. [ZukoxOc]





	1. Chapter 1

I thought of this the other day and thought I might give it a try. I would love to hear opinions about what you think of it. Thanks :)

•••

Staring into the mirror in the corner of my dimly lit bedroom, I took one last look at the the young woman in the reflection. 

Tomorrow I would be sixteen. Tomorrow I would be old enough to move up from the basic chores around the tavern to more "adult" jobs, which was code for becoming a cheap form of entertainment to whatever drunken slime ball paid the right price. Which is why tomorrow I would be long gone by the time anyone could notice. 

With a shaky hand, I gripped the stolen kitchen knife tightly and began cutting the long brown hair that had framed my face since I was a child. Slicing away my identity, so all that was left was a blank slate for a fresh start. When I was finished my soft brown hair was reduced to just a shaggy mop of short waves. It wasn't great, but it was similar to the way many of the boys in this area wore their hair, so hopefully it would be convincing enough for the time being. 

I yanked my tattered dress off and tossed it near the pool of brown waves that now lay discarded on the floor. I quickly pulled a bundle of clothes out from under my mattress and laid them out on my bed. There was an inn attached to the tavern and I had taken advantage of laundry duty a few days ago to steal some clothes from a young fire nation soldier who never even noticed they were gone. I made quick work of tightly binding my chest to hide my gender, I didn't have much going on up there but it was enough that it would have been noticeable. 

After pulling on the fire nation clothes I looked into the mirror again. I wasn't Toki anymore. I wasn't anyone. Brown hair, hazel eyes, medium skin tone, my plain features were non denominational. I could say I was from anywhere and no one would be able to tell the difference. I could just fade into the background, unnoticed. Never had I been so thankful to have such a bland appearance before.

Satisfied with my disguise, I snatched the bag of supplies I had hidden under the bed and slipped through the window. It was easy enough getting down to the street from the second story, I had done it numerous times before, though it was always much harder before with a dress on. Once my feet were safely on the ground I started running in the direction of the next town, a port that was currently under fire nation control for military purposes. If I was lucky maybe I could weasel my way onto an outbound ship and never look back. I just needed to blend in on the ship long enough to get to the next port where I could just disappear again. It was perfect. 

I had stopped off in a secluded area to rest part of the night so I could be prepared for anything when I arrived, so it was nearly noon by the time I got to the port. It was so busy, not like my quiet town a few hours away, and there was red as far as the eye could see. I had never seen so many fire nation soldiers in one place before, and it took all my willpower to keep my composure and blend in. These men had no idea I was a poor earth kingdom tavern girl, as far as they knew I was a boy from the fire nation colonies who was here looking for work, and I intended to keep it that way.

Making my way through the crowd, I noticed the docks were full of massive fire nation warships except for one right in the middle. That dock was occupied by an older ship that was drastically smaller than all the others and looked to be heavily damaged. I walked along the docks slowly, eyeing the huge dark ships uncertainly. Giant metal death traps is what they really were. If my plan worked out, I would be trapped, confined, stuck on one of those giant metal cages with enemy soldiers for who knows how long until it made port again. 

"Hey watch where you're going!" A grumpy voice broke me from my train of thought as I walked directly into an armored chest. 

"Sorry!" I replied, quickly backing away from the man I had walked into while lost in my thoughts. He was older, but not too old, with short hair and a beard that were both graying badly.

"What are you doing down here kid? Are you lost or something?" He asked eyeing me suspiciously.

"No sir, Im looking for work" I answered, doing my best to make my voice sound slightly deeper.

"Looking for work?" He mumbled looking me up and down, sizing me up. "You got any skills?" 

"Some" I answered vaguely. "I'm a really hard worker, and I can learn anything fairly quickly." I added before he could completely shut me down. 

"It seems to be your lucky day kid. A couple of my crew members were injured recently and the pickings are slim for new crew members around here" he sighed wearily. A huge grin broke out on my face at my amazing stroke of luck. Who knew that I would get on a crew so quickly? The spirits surely must have been smiling down on me today!

"I'm Lieutenant Jee" the man said placing a weathered hand on my shoulder and leading me down the docks.

"Thank you so much for this opportunity Lieutenant Jee!" I said, struggling to keep the excitement out of my voice. 

"Don't thank me just yet" he said, chuckling at the confused look I gave him. "So, you got a name, young man?" He asked expectantly.

"Yes! My name is uh, Toshi..." I cringed at my hesitation, mentally kicking myself for not thinking up a more fire nation sounding name ahead of time.

"Well Toshi, welcome aboard" the man said steering me onto the dock leading up to none other than the old, tiny warship that looked like it was long overdue for retirement.

The rest of my afternoon was spent with Lieutenant Jee, meeting the crew members and showing me where the main parts of the ship were. Once we were done with a general tour I dropped my things off in my quarters and went up on deck so he could explain exactly what my job would be while onboard. I stumbled slightly while climbing the stairs. Having never been on a ship before, even the gentle waves in the port were enough to hinder my balance. Hopefully it wouldn't take me too long to acquire my sea legs.

I found Lieutenant Jee on deck and listened carefully as he went about explaining what was expected of me. It was fairly simple work; helping the cook prep for meals, laundry, tending to the Komodo Rhino's that were kept onboard. Basically I would be helping wherever I was needed, floating around from station to station on the ship like a cabin boy, which was basically what I had done at the tavern so I was fairly confident I wouldn't have any trouble getting along. 

Not a moment after the Lieutenant finished talking with me, two new people came aboard from the docks. One was an older man with with a round belly and long gray hair with beard, next to him was a boy about my age with a shaved head, save for a ponytail at the top, and a very grouchy looking expression. I noticed Lieutenant Jee go stiff next to me as they got closer.

"Prince Zuko, General Iroh" Jee greeted. I felt my heart drop into my stomach at the mention of those names. I was nervous enough about being stuck on a ship with fire nation soldiers, but now I find out I just got myself hired on for the Prince of the freaking fire nation. What kind of sick cosmic joke was this?

"Prepare to set sail immediately!" Prince Zuko ordered in a demanding tone. 

"Yes sir!" Jee said with a nod.

"Oh, who is this?" Iroh asked curiously, noticing me as I tried my best to blend into the background.

"A new crew member sir, to replace Shu after the incident at the South Pole" Jee said, seeming to loosen up as he spoke to the old man. "This is Toshi" Jee said patting me on the back roughly, nearly knocking me over. 

"It is nice to meet you Toshi!" Iroh said cheerfully. He seemed so nice, extremely out of place for what you would expect on the Prince of the fire nation's ship. 

"It's nice to meet you too" I said with a polite smile.

"Prince Zuko!" Iroh said catching the moody Prince's attention since he hadn't been paying attention.

"What uncle" he growled.

"Come meet our new crew member" 

"I have no interest in the crew!" He barked. 

"But there's finally someone here your own age. A perfect opportunity to make a new friend!" Iroh exclaimed cheerfully.

"I don't need any friends! The only thing I'm interested in is capturing the Avatar!" 

"The Avatar? That's impossible. He's been missing for over a hundred years" the minute the words left my mouth I was met with a glare that could stop a stampeding Komodo rhino dead in its tracks.

"Well I found him! And every minute of my time you're wasting right now is another minute he's getting further away!" He growled, getting in my face. I stood there, not challenging him but not backing down either. I had no intentions of making trouble on the ship, but I wasn't going to show them I was weak and easy to push around either.

"Do not worry Prince Zuko, I am sure we will have no trouble catching up to him" Iroh said placing a hand on the Prince's shoulder and pulling him back a few steps so he was no longer in my face. "You just need to be patient." 

"I don't need patience! WHAT I NEED IS FOR THEM TO GET TO WORK AND GET THIS SHIP OUT OF THE HARBOR!!" Zuko bellowed before stomping below deck and slamming the door behind him violently. 

The Prince yelled so loudly that people on the docks had stopped what they were doing and looked in our direction curiously. I made a mental note to avoid the cranky Prince for the remainder of my time on the ship to avoid any more chances of confrontation.


	2. 2

Sleeping on this rocking metal death trap was impossible! It was already my third night on the fire nation ship and, though the sea sickness had finally passed, I was having a very difficult time adjusting. I had already been knocked off of my feet several times due to the constant rocking from the waves, which was frustrating and embarrassing for me but seemed to be pretty amusing to the rest of the crew. Long story short, there's a reason I wasn't born into the water tribe and I couldn't wait until I was back on solid ground again. 

The subtle orange glow coming through my window instantly put me in a bad mood. I threw my blanket aside and got out of bed with a huff. Just a little while longer, I reminded myself as I wrapped my chest in the uncomfortable binding and got dressed.  It was pretty lucky that the crew on this ship was so small that mostly everyone got their own rooms, at least I didn't have to keep the act up during my down time too. 

I rubbed my eyes with a yawn as I made my way to the mess hall for breakfast. Probably one of the only positive things about being stuck on this ship was that the food was surprisingly good. Though the fact that there were two fire nation royals onboard probably had a little something to do with that, it was still a nice perk. 

"Rough night?" Ryota laughed, taking in my exhausted appearance as he handed me a bowl of food. He was the cook on the ship, and he definitely fit the stereotypical image of a chef. He actually reminded me of General Iroh with his round belly and the friendly smile that seemed to always be on his face.

"Is it that obvious?" I groaned as I held the bowl tightly, just in case the evil ocean decided to try and knock me off balance once again. 

"I'd recognize that look anywhere rookie" he chuckled. "Don't worry, it'll get easier." 

"When?" I snorted indignantly and shoveled a spoonful of food into my mouth.

"Well, you're already improving. At least you're not sea sick anymore" he chuckled and I rolled my eyes. 

"You're catching on better than that spoiled Prince did, that's for sure!" A grumpy voice added. I looked over at Lieutenant Jee who was sporting a pretty sour expression.

"Haha that's true! He couldn't hold down solid food for over a week when we first got started!" Ryota snickered mischievously.

"So he's getting to you already this morning?" I asked Jee, who was looking like he had just sucked on a lemon. It was no secret that most of the crew didn't care for Zuko, and only tolerated his nonsense out of respect for his uncle.

"I'm just getting sick of taking orders from a disrespectful child!" He growled and glared into his bowl. 

"He's hardly a child" I mumbled. "He is sixteen like me, that's plenty old enough to know better than to act the way he does. He's just a spoiled brat." 

I looked up curiously when I was met with silence. Ryota and Jee were both staring at me curiously, like I was an exhibit in a museum of rarities or something.

"What?" I snapped.

"You're sixteen?" They asked incredulously.

"Yes" Why were they looking so shocked? Jee is the one that hired me for goodness sakes!

"Its just- you're so puny, we thought you were thirteen or fourteen at the most!" Jee said, obviously trying to hold back laughter.

"He's so scrawny for a sixteen year old boy!" Ryota howled as Jee lost his battle and began cracking up also.

"Looks like we're going to have to work him hard to toughen him up some!" Jee snorted.

"You need to eat up boy! You'll never be popular with the ladies if you don't get some meat on your bones!" Ryota added. 

I glared at the two men in front of me practically peeing themselves from laughing so hard. This isn't what I needed on this already crappy morning. I can't help it that I'm "scrawny" I'm a girl. I'm not supposed to be beefy and manly. Not that they knew any better, I reminded myself, they thought I was a boy. But it still didn't do much to improve my mood.

"I'm done" I snapped, setting my bowl on the table and leaving the room, ignoring the two men who continued to crack jokes.

I made quick work of tending to the Komodo Rhinos, they were huge and terrifying so I didn't like spending any more time in the stables than absolutely necessary. When that job was done I decided to head up to the laundry room to see if they needed any help. Usually the crewmen were responsible for washing their own laundry, so it was just Zuko and Iroh's clothes that needed tending, but it wasn't unusual for the Prince to pull someone away for some reason or another, resulting in abandoned piles of clothes scattered around the room. Unfortunately today wasn't one of those days. The room was completely deserted, there weren't even any of Zuko's training clothes waiting to be washed yet, so I had to move on and find something else to do. After the comedy show in the mess hall this morning, I decided to stay as far away from the kitchens as possible right now and went down to the engine room instead. 

"Hello?" I called out as I stepped into the noisy engine room.

"Hey Toshi" Kazuki, one of the engineers, called from behind a large piece of machinery. "What're you doing down here?" 

"Just thought I'd see if you need any help today" I said, watching nervously as Kazuki climbed over and down from the huge machine. 

"Actually, I do have something you could do for me" he said digging through one of his toolboxes. He pulled out a greasy piece of paper and handed it to me with a grin. I looked down at the paper with lists of random items written in messy handwriting going down the front and back of the paper. 

"What's it for?" I asked curiously. 

"That's the list of supplies and parts I need when we stop at the next port." He said as he grabbed a few broken tools from his box, holding them up for me to see. "Take that to Jee and tell him we can't put it off anymore. I'm running out of tools and were getting desperate down here!" 

"Why didn't you get supplies a few days ago?" I asked curiously. "I would figure that a fire nation harbor would be the best place to get most of these things." 

"Yes, it would have been great to get what we needed there, if Prince Zuko wouldn't have gone picking a fight with Commander Zhao, the guy who runs that harbor." Kazuki huffed in frustration. "Thanks to him, we had to rush out of there with just the minimum repairs and no supplies!"

"Wow, he sure likes to make enemies doesn't he" I mumbled.

"Ha! You have no idea! You're still new here, you just wait and see.." He growled.

"Well, I'll make sure to let Lieutenant Jee know how important it is" I said folding the paper up and leaving the engine room. I slowly made my way up to the bridge. That's where Jee usually spent most of his time so I was a little confused when I got there and he was nowhere to be found. 

"Have you seen Lieutenant Jee?" I asked the officer who was currently controlling the ship. There was a rotation of three or four guys that took shifts running the ship so every time I came up here there was a different person there, which made learning their names kind of difficult.

"He is on deck, training with Prince Zuko" he answered in a bored tone. 

"Thank you" I sighed as I left the room. 

Up until now, my plans to avoid Prince Zuko had been working out pretty well and I wasn't particularly excited for that to change so soon. I didn't need any repeats of that first day, especially not with as tired as I was today. I cursed under my breath as I stumbled on the stairs and hit my shin on the hard edge of the step. That would leave a lovely bruise. 

"Stupid unsteady, metal death trap" I growled as I pushed open the heavy door to the deck. Almost instantly I regretted offering to do this stupid task when I had to throw myself to the side avoid a giant fireball that was flying at my head. I yelped as I hit the deck and covered my face with my arms to protect against the heat as the fireball hit the wall behind me and dissipated.

"Toshi!" I heard Iroh call out in a worried tone as I slowly pulled myself to my feet and took a steadying breath.

"I'm ok" I said quickly when I noticed Iroh and Jee's worried expressions, while the Prince just stood there looking annoyed that his training was interrupted.

"I guess being a half pint has its advantages" Jee chuckled "you're pretty quick on your feet kid."

"I guess" I grumbled, not happy that he was still making jokes. 

"Ah, I heard about that little mix up this morning from the cook" Iroh said in amusement and I rolled my eyes. I was definitely not looking forward to hearing about how pathetic and unmanly I was all over again today. Especially not immediately after almost being blasted with a fireball.

"Maybe we should add him into the training sessions" Jee said to Iroh. I quickly opened my mouth to protest but was cut off wheel Iroh spoke again.

"That could be a good idea, but I don't think Toshi is a fire bender" he said thoughtfully.

"I'm not a bender" I confirmed, hopeful that they would stop with their scheming and just let me get to why I was here.

"We could work around that" Jee grinned. "There's still plenty for him to learn, even without bending." I groaned and ran my hand through my hair in irritation.

"What're you geezers yapping about?" Zuko snapped suddenly. "We were in the middle of something here!" 

I sighed in relief as the two men turned their attention to Prince Zuko and away from me. I never thought I would be thankful for Zuko and his attitude, but he really saved me just now.

"So Toshi, what was it you needed?" I snapped out of my thoughts as Lieutenant Jee looked at me curiously. 

"Oh yea, um, Kazuki wanted me to give you this" I said pulling the grease stained paper from my pocket and handing it to Jee.

"Who?" Zuko asked, looking confused.

"He's one of your engineers" I said with a raised eyebrow. Did he seriously not know the names of his crew after being stuck on this boat together for so long?

"Whatever" he mumbled in frustration and rolled his eyes.

"Ugh, Kazuki and his broken tools" Jee grumbled as he read over the list.

"He wanted me to stress how desperate he was getting for more supplies" I added. 

"Alright, I'll figure it out later" Jee said putting the paper in his pocket. 

"Good! Can we please get back to training now?" Zuko said impatiently.

"Sure thing!" Jee suddenly as an evil grin spread across his face. I felt my stomach sink and immediately turned to leave, but a strong hand clamped down on my shoulder and stopped me in my tracks.

"No no no!" I whined under my breath as Jee shoved me in the Prince's direction. 

"Do you think this is some kind of a game?" Zuko growled at Jee angrily.

"Not at all Prince Zuko!" Jee said in an overly cheerful tone. "You need a training partner, and I need to get these things taken care of for Kazuki!" He said patting his pocket that held the list.

From two feet away I could feel the heat radiating off of the Prince with his anger. I took a few extra steps to the side in case he suddenly decided to burst into flames or something crazy like that. This wasn't exactly my idea of fun either, I needed to figure out a way out of this or Zuko would likely barbecue me to a crisp.

"B-but I have work I should be doing" I spoke up. "Ryota needs my help prepping for dinner."

"Don't worry, I'll get it covered for you." Jee said as he turned to leave. "Have fun you two!" He called as he went below deck. 

Zuko, beyond pissed off at this point, stomped over to the middle of the deck and began tossing fireballs around randomly. I watched him nervously, not wanting to get myself in the middle of that. In one last attempt I gave Iroh a desperate look, silently pleading for mercy. 

"Don't worry Toshi" he said with a reassuring smile, which gave me a small sliver of hope, "I'll make sure he doesn't hurt you" he chuckled, effectively taking my small bit of hope and stomping all over it. 

"Oh spirits, what have I gotten myself into?!" I hissed as Iroh lead me toward the angry Fire Prince.


	3. 3

Zuko:

I released a steady breath and got into a fighting position, the bothersome little peasant stood before me, watching my every move like a cornered animal. 

It had been a little over a week since Uncle had forced me into training with the flighty little nuisance and I was still trying to get used to the whole arrangement. He wasn't a fire bender, but for some reason Uncle still insisted that he train with us. Something about toughening him up because he was too small. He wasn't wrong either, even I was surprised to find out the peasant was my age rather than a few years younger since he was significantly smaller than me. Maybe he had been malnourished or something.

Uncle and Jee had also mentioned that he was quick on his feet, and they were right. He was sloppy and untrained, but he had still somehow managed to dodge every attack I had thrown at him so far. Every single one. His constant avoidance reminded me of when I fought with the avatar at the South Pole. His fighting style was similar, avoid and evade, but the avatar was much more refined from training and mastering air bending. As irritating as the whole situation was, at least I was getting in some practice at fighting with a fickle opponent. Maybe the peasant wasn't as useless as I originally thought.

I took one more steady breath before lunging into my first attack, determined to finally get the best of the frustrating little worm once and for all. 

Toki: 

I gasped for breath as I rolled across the deck and jumped back to my feet, preparing for the Prince's next attack. I was really struggling to keep up with his relentless pace today and the tight binding around my chest wasn't helping any. It really restricted my breathing and made moving around a lot harder than I thought it would. 

It didn't help much that I had basically been used for the Prince's target practice for the last week, and every day he would just get tougher and tougher on me. I had learned basic self defense while working at the tavern, drunk men had a tendency to pick fights, but I wasn't used to this kind of physical exertion and I was getting burnt out fast. 

I ducked as a fireball flew overhead and immediately started running, knowing that there were likely several more to follow. I'd had just about enough being Prince Zuko's punching bag, this was getting ridiculous. I noticed Zuko seemed to be getting frustrated too, which was lucky for me because his attacks got erratic and a little more sloppy when he was upset. 

I quickly changed direction, dodging another fireball as I ran directly at Zuko. This seemed to take him by surprise, the whole time we had been "training" I had never once tried to attack him, always just dodged fireballs and ran for my life, but today I was going to knock this spoiled Prince down a peg. He backpedaled a few steps and threw a few flames directly at my face. I dropped down to the deck and rolled forward, pushing myself back up directly in front of him and using my momentum to tackle him to the ground. We both hit the deck with a hard thud and I heard a satisfying grunt as my knee slammed into his stomach. I held his wrists tightly as I used my bodyweight to pin him down. Unfortunately my moment of glory was short lived. As much as I hated to admit it Zuko was ten times stronger than I was, and wasted no time flinging me off of him and slamming me down against the deck. I gasped as the wind was knocked completely out of me and a crushing weight came down hard on my abdomen. I struggled under the Prince's weight as he pinned my arms down like I had done to him just moments ago. 

"You insufferable little peasant!" He snarled in my face as I glared up at him. "Who do you think you are?" 

I really wanted to tell him exactly what I thought, but I was desperately trying to catch my breath. If he didn't get his heavy ass off of me soon in was definitely going to pass out.

"Prince Zuko, that's enough" Iroh said firmly, finally stepping in to save me. 

Finally the crushing weight lifted off of me and I rolled on my side gasping for air. I could feel their eyes on me as I laid on the deck, struggling to breathe for what felt like minutes.

"Toshi, perhaps we should take you to see the doctor" Iroh said sounding extremely worried.

"No!" I gasped and scrambled to my feet. "I just need to rest for a while." 

"Then perhaps we should call it a day" Iroh said not looking very convinced.

"Sounds good to me" I huffed, turning toward the door to go below deck and pausing when I noticed the Prince standing in my way. His face held the usual look of annoyance, but this time it was mixed with something else that I couldn't quite put my finger on. Worry maybe? I didn't have it it me to care as I worked to breathe, the binding on my chest feeling like a constrictor, squeezing the life out of me. I quickly shoved past him and hurried below deck and all but ran to my room. 

The moment the door slammed shut behind me I yanked my shirt off and unwrapped my chest. I gasped as my lungs finally filled completely with sweet refreshing air. My whole body instantly relaxed as I stood there completely topless, just enjoying the feeling of not suffocating anymore. After a moment I pulled my shirt back on and flopped down on my bed. All I wanted to do was sleep and forget this stupid day ever happened.

I woke up several hours later and groaned when I saw the dark sky through my window. It was the middle of the night. But that's what happens when you go to sleep in the middle of the afternoon. I stood from my bed, wincing as I stretched out my sore muscles. I was wide awake and most of the crew was likely sleeping right now, not many people stayed up for night shifts, so I decided it was safe to go for a walk around the ship with little chance of getting put to work. 

I rewrapped my chest, not daring to walk around without it even in the middle of the night, and pulled on a long sleeve shirt. The door creaked loudly when I pulled it open and walked out into the long dark hallway. It was a good thing I remembered my way around because the few lanterns hanging from the walls didn't do much to help with visibility.

When I was finally on deck I walked over to the side of the ship enjoying the cool night breeze. The sky was completely clear and the stars were reflecting off of the ocean all around the ship. It was a beautiful sight. My legs were still sore from earlier so I decided to lay down on the deck and prop my feet up on the side rail. The cool metal under my back felt nice against my sore muscles as I stared up at the millions of stars overhead. For the first time since I had boarded this ship I actually felt peaceful. 

I had been laying there for a while when I heard someone walking across the deck. The joys of metal, it's really hard to sneak up on anyone when your foot steps can be heard so clearly. So much for my moment of peace.

Zuko:

"What're you doing?" I asked in confusion as I stood over the little peasant. The last thing I had expected when I came out here for some fresh air was to find him sprawled out on the deck with his feet propped up as if he were lounging on the beach.

"Just looking at the stars" he shrugged as if this were a completely normal thing to do.

"Why?" 

"It's relaxing" he chuckled. "You know, you should try it sometime." 

"I don't want to relax" I huffed.

"You're one of the most high strung people I've ever met. If anyone needs to relax a little, it's you." He said, making me want to smack that irritating grin off of his face. Who did this little peon think he was saying something like that to me? I opened my mouth to reply but was taken off guard when he did something I never would have expected.

"Come on" he said patting the deck next to him with a huge smile. "Give it a try, you won't regret it." 

"No" I said flatly. 

"What? Are you scared or something?" He quipped. 

"Why would I be scared?" I questioned.

"I don't know, I don't speak chicken" he taunted.

"I am the Prince of the Fire Nation. I'm not afraid of anything!" I growled. 

"Prove it" he said staring me down with a challenging look in his eyes.

"Fine!" I hissed, tired of the insolent peasant and his teasing. 

I shuffled over and laid down on the cold hard deck, crossing my arms over my chest.

"You're doing it wrong" he sighed.

"I'm laying down! How do you do that wrong?" I asked, turning my head to glare at him.

"Your feet" he said kicking my foot lightly. "You gotta prop them up to get the full effect." 

"No" 

"Just do it!" He snapped sounding annoyed.

"I feel ridiculous" I grumbled as I raised my feet to rest on the rail next to his. 

"Just relax and enjoy the view" he said turning his attention back to the sky. 

I rolled my eyes and looked up to the sky too, though I didn't see what was so special about it. They were just stars, the same as they had been every single night for as long as I could remember. Why did he make it seem like it would be some great experience? Could he get any weirder? First he just shows up here out of the blue, then acts like I'm the strange one just because I don't memorize the names of everyone on my crew. I have better things to do with my time than bother with learning people's names. Like training, and capturing the avatar. And speaking of training, what was with that whole episode this afternoon? He had uncle worried sick about him.

"What happened earlier?" I asked, looking at him curiously. 

"You mean when you nearly crushed me to death?" He chuckled.

"I didn't almost crush you to death" 

"Yea, you did. You weigh a ton!" He chuckled.

"It's your own fault" I replied. 

"How?" He asked incredulously.

"You tackled me" I pointed out.

"I was defending myself from a barrage of giant fireballs" he huffed, rolling his eyes.

"We were training!" I defended.

"Whatever. I'm fine now so it doesn't matter anyway." He said, dropping the subject and turning back toward the sky. 

I watched him from the corner of my eye, curious as to why he didn't want to explain what happened. This guy just got weirder and weirder by the minute. It just felt like something wasn't right about him but I just couldn't figure it out. I mean he looked normal enough, other than being small for his age there wasn't anything outwardly suspicious about him. He had typical features, medium skin tone, small straight nose, big hazel eyes, full lips and a nice smile, silky brown hair that framed that cute little face perfectly—   

My eyes went wide as I bolted upright from the deck, my feet falling roughly from the rail. 

"Price Zuko?" He asked, sounding concerned. 

"I'm going to bed!" I said harshly as I scrambled to my feet and rushed below deck. Thank Agni it was so dark outside because I could feel my face burning hot as I rushed to my room and locked the door behind me.

What the hell is wrong with me?! Toshi is a guy! And I was practically-...I don't even want to think about it! Clearly I must be delusional from lack of sleep! That had to be it! Just lack of sleep mixed with curiosity about what that insufferable peasant could be hiding! That's all!

That settled it then. I needed to get to bed and get some sleep before I started having hallucinations or something. When I'm well rested I would find out what was going on with him. No one was going to be keeping secrets from me on MY ship!


	4. 4

If I had ever questioned Prince Zuko's sanity before, there was no doubt about it now. There was clearly something wrong with that guy. 

Over the course of two and a half weeks we'd had only one civil conversation. In that one conversation I had somehow managed to piss him off on an entirely different level than anyone ever had before, which I found out when the other crew members pointed it out to me. They all seemed to find it fairly amusing but I found it to be completely insane. I hadn't even really done anything to him. I was just laying there minding my own business and he came to bother me. So what if I teased him a little bit? That was hardly any reason to act the way he had been acting the last few days. Glaring at me constantly when I wasn't looking, completely ignoring my existence when Ryota sent me to deliver his and Iroh's meals, he had even cancelled our training sessions so he wouldn't be forced to interact with me. Not that I was too bothered by that, I hated having to run for my life on a daily basis. 

I was getting frustrated with the Prince's ridiculous immature behavior and I was getting more and more anxious to get off this stupid ship. Unfortunately every port we had stopped at was located on an island, so I had no hope of escaping anytime soon. 

I mean, yea, I could try to get out of here while at an island port, but then I would be stuck in the same position I was in to begin with. I would need to find an outbound ship, get hired on the crew, and hope it was a safe enough environment that I could survive until we made it to the mainland. It just didn't make sense to make more work for myself when I could just stick around on this ship. I was already settled into a routine and the crew seemed like one big family, which I definitely hadn't expected from fire nation soldiers. I would be ok waiting a little bit longer until we finally reached a port on the mainland. As long as Zuko didn't snap and have me tossed overboard since my very existence seemed to bug him so much.

Since Zuko had cancelled our training sessions I had extra time to get my chores done without rushing anymore. Which was good because in my hurry to get things done before training, the condition of the rhino stables had taken a dramatic turn for the worse. No animal deserved to live in those kinds of conditions, no matter how huge and scary looking they were. 

I spent several hours in the stables cleaning the mess and feeding them. I even managed to work up the courage to give them somewhat of a bath before putting down fresh hay for them to sleep on. 

Once the rhino stables were cleaner than they had been in probably the last decade, and they were contentedly sleeping off their full bellies, I decided to head over to the laundry room to see if they needed any help. I was surprised to find the room completely empty and multiple stacks of clean laundry sitting on a table waiting to be picked up by the crew, it seems like the guys were really on the ball today. On the other side of the table sat two neat stacks of clothes that belonged to Zuko and Iroh.

I grabbed General Iroh's and Prince Zuko's clothes neatly in my arms and left the laundry room. I had learned very quickly that the Prince demanded that their clothes be delivered to their rooms because "it's the proper thing to do." I think it was really just an excuse because Prince cranky pants thought he was too good to be caught dead handling his own laundry.

I knocked quietly on Iroh's door, not surprised when I got no answer, and went inside. It wasn't often that general Iroh was in his room during the daytime, he was usually kept pretty busy with playing pai sho and helping Zuko with fire bending training. I laid the clothes neatly on his bed and left the room, shutting the door behind me. It was only a short walk to Zuko's room, but I tried to drag it out as long as I possibly could. Needless to say, I was less than excited to be trapped in an enclosed space with the guy who just randomly decided to hate me for no good reason. I slowed my pace and took a deep breath before knocking lightly on Zuko's door.

"Come in" his voice came calmly through the thick metal, catching me completely off guard. I was so prepared to be yelled at that I almost forgot to breathe as I slowly opened the door and stepped inside.

"What do you want?" He asked evenly as he sat in front of a small table in the corner of the room. A row of candles were lined up on the table, the flames steadily raising and lowering in time with his breathing. He was meditating. Good, maybe I could make it out of this encounter unscathed.

"I have your clean laundry Prince Zuko" I said hesitantly, not wanting to disturb the rare moment of calm and risk getting my head blown off by a fireball. It wasn't often that Zuko would calm down and act like a normal human being, but he really should do it more often. Being a raging lunatic all the time couldn't be good for his health. At the rate he was going he would probably die of a brain aneurysm before the age of thirty.

"Just put them away" he mumbled and took another deep breath. 

I kept my footsteps light as I walked across the room to the wardrobe so I could put his clothes away. It was pretty refreshing to be able to get my job done without the burning glares and snide comments for once and I was determined not to ruin it by making noise while he was trying to meditate. Though my hopes were quickly shattered when someone else knocked on the door and came walking into the room.

"Good evening nephew" Iroh said cheerfully as he walked into the room.

"Uncle, the only reason you should be interrupting me is if you have news about the Avatar." Zuko said calmly.

"Well, there is news Prince Zuko, but you might not like it" Iroh said dropping his cheerful attitude. "Don't get too upset."

"Uncle, you taught me that keeping a level head is a sign of a great leader. Now whatever you have to say, I'm sure that I can take it." Zuko said, impressively keeping his calm much longer than I expected him too.

"Okay then, we have no idea where he is." Iroh stated bluntly.

"What?!" Zuko yelled as he jumped to his feet, the candles in front of him nearly exploding under the influence of his rage. I yelped, dropping the shirt I was hanging and ducked down as the flames licked the ceiling of the room and embers flew everywhere wildly. So much for getting my work done without incident today.

"You really should open a window in here." Iroh said nonchalantly as he fanned embers away from his face. 

"Give me the map!" Zuko demanded, snatching a map from his uncle's hand and opening it roughly. Glad that Zuko wasn't trying to burn us all to death anymore, I quickly got to my feet to finish hanging the shirt I had dropped.

"There have been multiple sightings of the Avatar, but he is impossible to track down." Iroh sighed. I glanced over curiously at the map in the Prince's hand. There were dots where the avatar had been sighted connected by a dotted line that was going around in zigzags.

"How am I gonna find him, Uncle?" Zuko asked helplessly. "He is clearly a master of evasive maneuvering."

"It looks like he's lost" I mumbled a little too loudly as I hung the last shirt in the wardrobe.

"Who asked you?!" Zuko spat venomously as he turned his signature glare on me. 

"Ah, but he does have a point." Iroh said thoughtfully. "Perhaps we should hear what Toshi has to say."

"I don't care what he has to say!" Zuko growled angrily. 

"Look, I didn't mean to step on your toes," I said, regretting that I even opened my mouth to begin with. "I was just saying that from the looks of that map, the guy probably has no idea where he is going. Or at the very least, he is just wandering around with no set destination." 

If looks could kill, the murderous glare Zuko currently had on me would have violently stabbed me to death ten times over. I stood before him, not challenging him but also refusing to be intimated. I didn't know what exactly had happened the other night for him to be acting this way, but I refused to inflate his giant ego any more by backing down or apologizing when I hadn't done anything wrong.

Iroh's sudden burst of laughter broke Zuko and I away from our staring contest. A small smile made its way to my face when I looked at the jolly older man. 

"What's so funny?" Zuko growled.

"It's good to see you two are getting along again!" Iroh said with a huge grin. "I was beginning to worry."

"Oh yea, were best friends" I snorted sarcastically and rolled my eyes.

"Don't you have something to be doing?" Zuko snapped at me grumpily. 

"Don't you have an avatar to chase?" I replied. "If he even really exists" I added as I walked out of the room.

"He does exist!" Zuko yelled as I walked out. "AND IM GOING TO CAPTURE HIM!" I snickered as his voice echoed off the metal walls in the hallway.

I had spent the afternoon helping Ryota prep and cook dinner. I always enjoyed helping out in the kitchen because I got to taste test all of the food before anyone else. The only down side was that it always ended up being my job to bring a tray of food up for Iroh and Zuko who ate  separately in their own private room. 

I groaned as I watched Ryota load up the tray with a huge plate of fish and several other dishes. It sure was going to be fun trying not to spill all that on this rocking metal death trap.

"Don't forget to tell them the news about the avatar for me" Ryota called.

"Yeah, yeah" I muttered as I hoisted the heavy tray up and carefully began the trip to the royal's dining room. Just what I needed, to have to go look Zuko in the face and tell him we found out where the avatar was after I had teased him earlier about the avatar not existing. He would sure have a good time rubbing that one in my face. 

"Toshi!" Iroh greeted cheerfully as I stepped into the room. "I'm so happy to see you!" I laughed as he rubbed his belly and eyed the tray loaded up with food.

"It's good to see you too General Iroh" I said as I began setting out the dishes and serving each of them some food. 

"So I have some interesting news from Ryota" I said as I served Zuko's food. 

"If it's another speech about the meal and where it originated from, I'm not interested!" Zuko huffed.

"No, it's-"

"Not interested!" He snapped, giving me a hard glare.

"Prince Zuko" Iroh sighed, seeming tired. "I apologize for my nephew."

"It's ok" I said grabbing the tray and standing up. "I had news about the avatar, but since he is so uninterested I'll just go" I said starting to leave.

"Wait!" Zuko yelled jumping up from the table and grabbing me by the arm roughly.

"Ow" I mumbled giving him a dirty look. 

"What about the avatar?" He demanded harshly. 

"There was a rumor going around docks at the last port that the Avatar has been staying on Kyoshi Island" I said and yanked my arm out of his harsh grip.

"Kyoshi Island! Go ready the rhinos!" He all but yelled in my face. "He's not getting away from me this time!" He muttered as he stormed away. 

"Jerk" I sighed as I rubbed my sore arm. 

"Well, no sense letting all this wonderful food go to waste!" Iroh said seeming unfazed by his nephew's outburst. "Toshi, why don't you join me for dinner? It seems I have plenty to share!" 

"Thank you" I smiled at the old man as I happily took a seat at the table and served myself a plate of food. It will forever be a mystery to me how Iroh and Zuko could possibly be related.


	5. 5

Unedited. You have been warned.   
~~~

The journey to Kyoshi Island took a couple of days and Zuko had been surprisingly quiet the whole time. He spent most of his time on deck, training with Iroh in preparation for his next fight with the Avatar. I was thankful that they hadn't asked me to "help" with Zuko's training again, with the way he still continued to glare at me on occasion, the last thing I needed was to give him an opportunity to throw fireballs at me.

"There it is!" Zuko called out, storming across the deck towards the front of the ship.

I stopped my job of mopping the scorch marks off of the deck from the prince's last training session and turned my attention to the horizon. Sure enough, there was a piece of land not too far ahead of us. 

"We should be there in just a few hours" Iroh mused, stroking his beard. 

"Begin preparations at once!" Zuko barked and went below deck. 

I rolled my eyes and continued on mopping the deck. Hopefully the detour at Kyoshi wouldn't take too long, I was eager to get away from all the rinky dink island ports and hit the main land already. The sooner I could sneak away from this ship, the better!

"Toshi" Lieutenant Jee called from the doorway. "Head below deck and help saddle the rhinos" 

"Yes sir" I mumbled, my stomach sinking with dread. Just because I had worked up the courage to be near the rhinos didn't mean I was comfortable with saddling them.

I put my mop and bucket away and slowly shuffled below deck toward the stables. I was relieved that there were a few other guys that were already saddling up a couple of the rhinos so I only had to do one of them. My hands were visibly shaking as I slowly lead the rhino out of it's stable, desperately trying to stay calm. If these things could sense fear then one wrong move and I could easily get trampled to death. 

The saddle was a task in itself, the thing was solid leather with metal accessories, and I swear it had to weigh about a hundred pounds. I huffed as I struggled to even lift the saddle, wondering how in the hell I was going to manage to get the damn thing on the back of a giant rhino.

"That saddle is twice your size" One of the crewmen called from the other side of the room.

"Let the kid try, he needs to build some muscle!" The other one said with a laugh.

"You're right, those arms of his look like twigs!" The first guy replied and they both shared a laugh.

"Jerks" I grunted as I all but drug the massive saddle over to the rhino. Gathering all of my strength, I lifted the saddle up as high as I could, which wasn't even close to where it needed to be to get it on the rhino's back. I struggled under the weight of the saddle as long as I could before my arms gave out. The saddle fell with so much force that it nearly took me down with it.

"Need some help over there?" One of the guys called out before they both burst out laughing again. 

"Will you two howling hog monkeys just shut up?!" I yelled in frustration, shooting them a deadly glare as I struggled to lift the saddle again. 

"WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE?" I heard a familiar voice yell from the doorway.

"Prince Zuko!" Both men said nervously as they stood at attention. 

"Why aren't these rhinos ready to go yet?" Zuko asked as he and a few other soldiers walked into the room and turned his glare on me.

"Don't look at me!" I huffed, "This thing weighs a ton!"

"Move!" Zuko growled as he shoved me out of the way and grabbed the saddle. I watched in shock as he lifted the saddle and effortlessly tossed it onto the rhino's back. I had to admit I was impressed, Zuko was definitely a lot stronger than he looked. He quickly buckled the strap around the rhino's belly and turned back to me with his signature glare.

"What?" I snapped.

"Useless peasant!" He growled as he and the other soldiers mounted the rhinos. The front of the ship suddenly opened up and Zuko lead the men down the ramp and toward the village. 

I went back up on deck and stood next to Iroh, watching Zuko and the men charge into a small village. I could barely make out the shapes of some people as they swooped down seemingly out of nowhere and attacked the prince and his men.

"Where did they come from?" I asked in surprise. 

"The Kyoshi Warriors truly live up to the legends" Iroh said, watching the scene before us carefully.

Sporadic blasts of fire lit up the town, catching all of the nearby buildings and a large statue of Avatar Kyoshi on fire. I felt my stomach twist uncomfortably, Zuko had almost singlehandedly destroyed this entire village all for the sake of his stupid mission. Suddenly a large shape in the sky caught my eye and I gasped in shock. A huge fluffy bison was flying away from the village. Flying! How was that even possible? As the bison flew over the water a small shape fell from it's back and hit the water with a splash. 

"Prince Zuko is returning" Iroh said sounding relieved. He must have been worried about him. "Shall we go meet him below deck?" Iroh asked cheerfully.

"Sure" I mumbled, following Iroh down the stairs. 

Prince Zuko and his men were just riding up the ramp by the time we got there and none of them were looking very happy.

"So, how did it go?" Iroh asked optimistically.

"He escaped AGAIN!" Zuko snarled as he dismounted the rhino. 

"Woah, what happened to you?" I asked when I noticed he was sopping wet. I glanced at the other men and sure enough, they were soaked also. "Did it just start raining or something?"

"WHY DON'T YOU MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!?" Zuko yelled, suddenly getting in my face. "Why are you even here!? Don't you have work you should be doing!?" He continued getting so close that I had to lean back a little bit.

"I asked him to come down here Prince Zuko" Iroh sighed grabbing his nephews shoulder and pulling him back a step. 

"What is your problem!?" I asked accusingly, stepping forward to get in his face. It was a little harder to intimidate him since I barely came up to his nose, but I was determined to try. "I only asked you a question! Why do you hate me so much, huh!? What did I ever do to you!?" I yelled, roughly poking him in the chest out of anger.

Zuko's eyes widened for a second and a strange look flashed across his face before it was quickly replaced with the usual scowl. He quickly backed away from me like I was a diseased animal and stormed off down the hallway.

"Toshi" Iroh said, sounding a little bit shocked.

"I should get to kitchen duty" I said to Iroh politely, trying to ignore the strange way he was looking at me. What in the world is going on with everyone lately?

Zuko POV:

"Follow the Avatar!" I commanded the helmsman as I stepped into the room. "We can't afford to lose his trail!" I huffed and crossed my arms, ignoring the soreness from where that irritating peasant just jabbed me.

"Yes sir!" The helmsman replied obediently. That's the way people are supposed to behave on this ship. Following orders and not talking back! 

"Prince Zuko, could I have a word with you?" My uncle said as he trailed into the room after me. 

"Not now Uncle!" I snapped, uninterested in whatever lecture he was planning on giving me. 

"I'm afraid I must insist" he continued. "You are still soaked to the bone, if you don't get changed soon you could get sick" he said with a look of concern on his face. 

"Fine!" I huffed, giving in despite knowing this was just an excuse to talk to me. I made my way to my room, aware of my uncle following me every step of the way.

"Alright, what is it?" I asked as soon as we stepped inside my room and shut the door. 

"You should change clothes fir-"

"I'm fine!" I interrupted. "Just get on with it."

"Alright then. What happened below deck just now?" He asked bluntly, which was pretty unusual for him. 

"What do you mean?" I furrowed my brow in confusion, hoping he wasn't about to bring up that irritating little peasant. Ever since that night on deck I had been trying to figure out what he had been hiding, but so far I hadn't found anything out of the ordinary other than that he was probably even more puny and pathetic than I had first thought. I mean, he couldn't even saddle that komodo rhino earlier and that's basic skills.

"With Toshi" Uncle Iroh stated and I had to suppress a groan. "I haven't seen you run away from someone so quickly since that time Azula's little friend almost kissed you by the turtle duck pond." He said with a sly smile. 

"W-What does that have to do with anything?" I sputtered, feeling my cheeks get warm.

"I was just curious if something happened that I should know about" He said.

"What!?" 

"I have noticed you staring at him all the time Prince Zuko. I'm not here to judge you." He said 

"UNCLE!!! I yelled, my face burning in embarrassment. 

"I just wanted you to know that you can talk to me about anything-"

"JUST STOP!" I snapped. "That peasant is hiding something and I'm going to find out what it is! THAT'S IT!"

"Is that so?" He asked curiously.

"Yes! I won't have anyone keeping secrets on my ship!" I stated matter-of-factly. 

"I see" he said, not sounding convinced. "Well if that's all it is, then surely you won't mind if I ask Toshi to bring you some dry clothes to change into!" He said mischievously.

"What? Wait!" I said quickly but he was already walking out the door. I groaned and rubbed my forehead in frustration. What the hell had just happened?


	6. 6

Toki POV:

I stood in the hallway staring grimly at the prince's door. Why, oh why did Iroh have to ask me of all people to bring Zuko some dry clothes? Why couldn't Zuko march his grumpy butt to the laundry and get his own clothes for once? 

I sighed heavily and reluctantly knocked on the thick metal door. I could hear shuffling coming from inside the room but didn't get a response, so I knocked again. Nothing. 

"Prince Zuko" I called out. "Your uncle asked me to bring you some dry clothes." 

Still nothing. 

"Prince Zuko?" I tried again, wondering what he could possibly be doing in there.

Silence. 

"I can hear you moving in there!" I said loudly, getting irritated with this stupidity. "I'm counting to three, then I'm coming inside!" I called, hoping to rile him up enough to get some kind of response. 

"Ok then, have it your way" I said. "One...Two...Th-" I paused when the door suddenly flew open and I was met with that signature scowl.

"I didn't answer because I didn't want you here!" He snapped grumpily. "Can't you take a hint?" 

"Sorry, but I'm under direct orders from General Iroh to deliver these clean dry clothes to you" I said pushing past him and letting myself into his room. "It is my job after all" I said sarcastically.

"Alright fine, just put them down and get out!" He barked. I stood in the middle of the room still holding his clothes in my arms, eying him as he stood against the wall near the door.

"What did I ever do to you?"  I asked him seriously. 

"What?" He asked, a mix of confusion and surprise painted across his face.

"Im not stupid Prince Zuko. You've had a problem with me from the minute I stepped foot on this ship." I sighed. "I'm sick of the childish games, and I'm sick of you getting in my face at the drop of a hat. If you have something to say to me, then just man up and say it already" I said staring him down. 

"Fine" he said walking closer to me. "Something isn't right about you. I know it. You're hiding something and I'm going to find out what it is!" 

"What?" This time it was my turn to look surprised.

"I'm not stupid either" he hissed. "I know I'm right, and I'm going to be watching your every move until I find out what your secret is." 

He wasn't wrong about me hiding something, but he had to be thinking it was something far worse than what it actually was. What would he do if he found out I'm really a girl? It's not like it's illegal for women to work on Fire Nation ships, I had only dressed like a boy for my own protection. A ship full of men who hadn't had "alone time" with a woman in who knows how long. I would have been way too easy of a target.

"And what will you do if you do find something?" I asked, keeping my voice even.

"Ill have you thrown off of my ship at the very least, depending on what it is. Maybe even prison if necessary" he said threateningly and I had to hold back a laugh. He was definitely over thinking it. The only thing he would be able to do is kick me off the ship, and since the whole plan is to get off and the first mainland port anyway, clearly I have nothing to worry about.

"Ok Prince Zuko" I said stepping forward and handing him his clothes. "If you really think there's something to find, then game on" I said with a challenging smirk, thoroughly enjoying the baffled look on the prince's face. 

Clearly he was expecting me to be nervous or upset, not directly challenge him to try and figure out my secret. I laughed lightly as I walked around him towards the door so I could leave the room.

"Tomorrow morning" he said suddenly, making me stop in my tracks and look at him curiously. "Don't be late for training" he said with his own challenging grin. I rolled my eyes, pissed that he got the last laugh, and walked out of the room. 

Early the next morning I was very rudely awakened by loud banging on my door.

"Toshi! Training time" Lieutenant Jee called loudly. 

"I'm up" I groaned, dragging myself out of bed. Damn Firebenders, always up at the crack of dawn for training.

I made quick work of wrapping my chest and getting dressed, but took my sweet time walking up to the deck.

"Good Morning Toshi!" Iroh greeted me cheerfully as I walked on deck. 

"Good morning General Iroh" I said glancing around and realizing Zuko wasn't even here yet. 

"Good morning Prince Zuko" he said suddenly glancing behind me at the prince who had just walked on deck.

"Good morning Uncle" he mumbled grumpily.

I turned around to make a snarky comment but paused when I was met with the sight of a shirtless Zuko. I immediately looked away feeling my cheeks get warm. He had always worn a shirt for training up until now, but it had been getting warmer outside as we gradually moved north so I guess it wasn't unusual that he would decide to go shirtless. I had to admit he looked really good, and I was extremely tempted to stare but I was supposed to be a boy right now so I needed to act like one.

"Okay you two, let's get started" Iroh said with a weird smile on his face. What was that cooky old man up to?

I moved across the deck and got into place, training my eyes on Zuko and preparing myself for his attack. He was watching my every move like a hawk as he shifted his feet. As soon as he raised his arms I quickly darted to the left, not waiting for him to strike first. A huge fireball flew in front of me and I skidded to a sudden stop and quickly changed direction. Fireballs were flying all around me as I dodged and ducked praying I wouldn't get hit. Zuko was quickly advancing on me, his attacks becoming more centralized and limiting my area to run. I jumped to the right, narrowly dodging a fire blast and immediately had to duck one that was aimed right at my head.

"Are you trying to kill me?" I yelled as I quickly got back to my feet. 

"Stop whining!" He snapped as he shot another fireball at me.

"You know you can't stalk me if I'm dead, right?" I huffed as I twisted out of the way of the fire. 

"I'm not stalking you!" He said in offence, hesitating in his attacks. Just what I had been hoping for.

"What else do you call watching someone in hopes to find out their secrets?" I antagonized and immediately darted away from him. I heard him growl as he ran across the deck after me.

"I am not a stalker!" He yelled as he began recklessly chucking fire blasts my way.

"Could have fooled me!" I teased as I jumped backwards to dodge a blast aimed at my feet. Unfortunately I had misjudged the space behind me and accidentally hit the short wall at the edge of the ship.

"Toshi!" I heard Iroh call out as I fell over the side of the ship and hit the water. 

I immediately panicked, flailing my arms and kicking my feet in a desperate attempt to swim. I was suddenly regretting that I never learned to swim properly. I had been working at the tavern since I was young so I never had time for things like swimming so there was never any reason for me to learn. 

As much as I tried to reach the surface, I didn't seem to really be getting anywhere. My lungs were burning for air and I closed my eyes as I started to lose consciousness. Suddenly a strong arm wrapped around my waist and began pulling me up. We broke the surface of the water and I gasped, filling my lungs with sweet relief. Once I could breathe again my vision cleared and I was met with a burning amber gaze.

"Are you okay?" He asked and I blinked in shock. His expression was surprisingly calm considering he just had to jump off the ship and save me from drowning.

"Yea I'm okay" I breathed, suddenly very aware of how close we were and how tight he was holding me. It didn't help that he was still shirtless, so now I had an up close and personal experience with his strong arms and toned chest.

"Zuko!" Iroh called from the deck of the ship looking like he was on the verge of a heart attack.

Lieutenant Jee ran over to the side of the ship and tossed a thick rope down for us to grab onto so that they could pull us up. Zuko tightened his grip around my waist and used his free arm to grab hold of the rope. I took hold of the rope also and braced myself as Jee and a few other crew members hoisted us back up onto the ship. As soon as they pulled us over the side Iroh pulled Zuko into a bone crushing hug, telling him how worried he had been. It was a really sweet gesture but I could tell Zuko was really uncomfortable with the display as he wriggled out of his uncle's grasp.

"Toshi, what the hell happened?" Jee asked sternly. "You almost drowned!" 

"It was an accident, I didn't mean to fall" I replied. 

"What were you thinking getting a job on a ship when you can't swim?" He demanded. I stared at him, unsure of how I should answer him. I had honestly never even thought about the fact that I couldn't swim when I came here. I didn't think I would be on board long enough for it to even be a factor. 

"Why didn't you at least tell someone you couldn't swim?" He asked, seeming frustrated with my lack of answers.

"I'm sorry" I mumbled, squeezing my hands together tightly, something I had started when I would get into trouble back home. I had always figured it was a better option to squeeze my hands together until I couldn't feel my fingers rather than to punch someone in the face. But by this point when I did it, it was purely out of habit. 

"You would have been even more sorry if you would have drowned" he scolded me angrily.

"Lieutenant Jee, I think that's enough" Iroh cut in with his ever calm voice. "I  think we're done for today. Why don't you two go get changed into some dry clothes" He said, effectively diffusing the tense atmosphere.

"Yes sir" I said, not hesitating to walk off the deck and down to my room. I quickly changed my clothes and brought my wet ones to the laundry so they could be cleaned and dried later. Once that was finished I decided that I should probably thank Zuko for saving my life since I hadn't earlier. 

I shuffled along down the dark hallway toward the prince's room, hoping he wasn't in a bad mood after what happened. Once his door was in sight I took a deep breath and lightly knocked on the thick steel.

"Not now Uncle!" Zuko snapped loudly.

"Actually, it's Tok-uh T-Toshi" I stammered, almost slipping up on my name. 

"Oh" he mumbled and pulled the door open. Much to my relief, he had already changed and was now wearing his typical long sleeve shirt and pants. "What do you want?" He asked grumpily.

"I just wanted to say thank you for saving me. I should have said it earlier but-" I said.

"Jee had a point you know" he interrupted, staring at me sternly, "why the hell would you take a job working on a ship when you can't swim? Don't you realize how dangerous that is?"

"Well, thinking ahead never was my strong suit" I chuckled, trying to lighten the mood but it didn't seem to work very well.

"It isn't funny, you almost drowned!" He snapped, crossing his arms angrily.

"Sorry" I mumbled, rolling my eyes. He didn't respond, so we both just stood there in awkward silence for a few seconds until a familiar and comforting voice caught both of our attention.

"Hello Prince Zuko, Toshi, I hope I'm not interrupting something" he said suggestively, giving the prince a sly smile.

"NO!" Zuko said very quickly and loudly. "I-I mean we were just talking. But we're done now!" He said awkwardly.

"I see" Iroh said.

I shifted my gaze between the two, thoroughly confused by Zuko's suddenly strange behavior and flushed cheeks, and the knowing look and mischievous smirk on Iroh's face.

"Ookay..." I mumbled, feeling left out of whatever was happening here. "I have chores to do, so I'm just gonna go..."

"Actually Toshi" Iroh said, slinging an arm around me and holding me in place, "Lieutenant Jee said you could have the rest of the day off, so why not join Prince Zuko and I for some delicious tea!" He offered cheerfully.

"Oh, uh... Okay, I guess" I said, unsure if it was a good idea after the weirdness just now. 

"Wonderful!" He said grabbing Zuko with his other arm and practically dragging us down the hallway. 

~~~

Hope y'all are liking the story, comments are always welcome and appreciated :)


	7. 7

It had been about a week since Zuko and I had our little chat, and true to his word, he hadn't let me out of his sight since then.  He had forced me to go along on all of his ridiculous trips ashore to find leads for his search. He had even drug me along to investigate a prison escape that was supposedly lead by the Avatar and his traveling companions, and now he was trying to keep me onboard the ship while we were docked at a mainland port. The first one we had reached since I had boarded this stupid ship, the one I have been waiting for, and he wanted to keep me onboard so that he could "keep an eye on me". 

I was fuming as I paced back and forth along the deck while Zuko stood against the wall, impatiently tapping his foot as he waited for his uncle to return from wherever he had wandered off to. 

"That's it!" Zuko snapped suddenly, startling me. "Come on, were going find him!" He barked and stormed off of the ship, expecting me to follow. 

Finally! This was my chance! I hurried off of the ship after Zuko, glancing around for some kind of distraction so I could slip away unnoticed. I followed Zuko through the small port town as he asked if anyone had seen his uncle, then even further as we followed the directions people had given us. Zuko pushed his way through a bamboo thicket on the outskirts of the town as he called out for Iroh.

"Uncle! It's time to leave! Where are you?" He yelled as we pushed through the bamboo. "Uncle Iroh!"

"Over here" we heard Iroh's voice just ahead.

"Uncle?" Zuko said in confusion as we stepped into a clearing and found Iroh soaking in a hot spring. "We need to move on, we're closing in on the Avatar's trail and I don't want to lose him!"

"You look tired, Prince Zuko. Why don't you and Toshi join me in these hot springs and soak away your troubles" he said with a serene smile.

"My troubles cannot be soaked away!" Zuko snapped. "It's time to go!"

"You should take your teacher's advice and relax a little. The temperature's just right. I heated it myself" Iroh said, making a show of blowing steam from his nose and heating the water with his firebending.

"Enough! We need to leave now! Get out of the water!" Zuko demanded.

"Very well" Iroh said with a shrug as he stood up revealing his nudity.

"Woah!" I yelped as Zuko and I quickly covered our eyes.

"On second thought," Zuko quickly backpedaled, "why don't you take another few minutes, but be back at the ship in half an hour or I'm leaving without you."

I followed Zuko back through the bamboo and most of the way back to the ship, but as we approached the docks a large group of sailors walking back to their ship caught my eye. Perfect! I slowed my pace as we approached the group, then quickly ducked into the crowd as we passed by. 

I glanced between a few men and saw that Zuko hadn't even noticed my absence as he continued on his way back to his ship. Hah! Finally, freedom! I immediately pushed my way out of the group and headed back into town. 

I strolled casually down the streets, looking at all of the different shops and restaurants. I was glad I had grabbed my money when I had heard we were going to be stopping at a port, so I would have enough to get me well into the earth kingdom before I would need to get a new job.

I froze in place when I noticed some of Zuko's crew walking towards me. Hoping they hadn't noticed me yet, I ran into a nearby alley between two buildings and hid behind a stack of crates. I peeked between a gap in the crates and watched as they strolled right by me. I released a sigh of relief and turned my attention to the alley I was in. It connected to the other alleys for the rest of the buildings in this area of town and I decided I probably had a better chance of getting away unnoticed going that way, but it would probably take a little longer. 

I followed the alleys around the backs of different shops and made my way out of town. By the time I had made it to the thicket of bamboo around the outside of town, the sun was already starting to go down. 

"This is the Fire Lord's brother," I suddenly heard a man's voice announce loudly through the trees to my right. "The Dragon of the West, the once great General Iroh, but now, he's our prisoner." 

"Iroh" I groaned, rubbing my forehead in frustration and knowing I was going to seriously regret what I was about to do. 

I made a hard right and headed directly toward where the voice had come from. When I reached the clearing I found myself on the far side of the hot spring that Iroh had been lounging in earlier. I gasped when I noticed the five earthbenders shackling a barely clothed Iroh's wrists and ankles and wrapping his entire body in chains. Kind of overkill if you ask me. 

I took a deep breath, praying to the spirits for luck, and sprinted towards the earthbenders as they pulled Iroh up on the saddle of one of their ostrich horses. Once I was close enough I launched myself at the closest man and tackled him to the ground. 

"Toshi!" Iroh called out nervously as I wrestled with the earthbender, swinging my fists wildly. I managed to land a solid punch to his face before a large rock slammed into me and sent me flying off of him. I sat up in a daze and immediately felt my arms being jerked behind me.  

"You foolish boy!" The earthbender growled in my ear as he shackled my wrists behind my back. "Did you really think you would be able to take on five earthbenders on your own?"

"I didn't really think that far ahead" I said in embarrassment as I was yanked up onto one of the ostrich horses also. 

"Toshi, what were you thinking?" Iroh asked me as the men started off away from the town. 

"I couldn't just sit there and watch them take you." I said, feeling my cheeks get red in embarrassment at my utter failure. 

Why hadn't I just gone back to the ship and told Zuko? That would have been the smarter thing to do. At least then he would know what happened, but now who knows what would happen to us. 

We sat in silence for a while as we continued traveling through the night. The earthbenders would talk to each other about various things to pass the time but rarely said anything to us. 

"Where are you taking us?" Iroh spoke up after a few hours.

"We're taking you to face justice" the earthbender in front of me replied.

"Right. But where, specifically?" Iroh continued, probing for answers.

"A place you're quite familiar with, actually. You once laid siege to it for 600 days, but it would not yield to you" the man replied smugly.

"Ah! The great city of Ba Sing Se" Iroh sighed nostalgically.

"It was greater than you were, apparently" the man said.

"I acknowledged my defeat at Ba Sing Se! After 600 days away from home, my men were tired and I was tired" Iroh replied. "And I'm still tired" he said with a dramatic yawn and a stretch.

"Iroh!" I called out as he suddenly fell from the back of the ostrich horse.

The earthbenders seemed irritated with him as they all stopped and a couple of them lifted him back up onto the ostrich. 

"Are you ok?" I asked as the earthbenders remounted the ostriches.

"I'm just fine" he said with a sly grin as he glanced down where he had been laying on the road. 

I glanced down too and raised my eyebrows when I noticed one of Iroh's sandals laying on the ground. I looked back up at him and he put a finger to his lips as the ostrich horses began walking again. I looked back at the sandal and I realized what he was doing. He left a clue. So, he thinks Zuko will come looking for him after all. That's encouraging. 

After a while longer I noticed the sun was starting to come up and I sighed heavily. We had been riding non stop through the night and my eyes were getting really heavy and my arms were killing me from being shackled behind my back for so long. I had even started losing some feeling in my hands after a while. I had considered telling them that I wasn't fire nation, but then they would probably still take me as a traitor for defending the Firelord's brother. Heck, my punishment for being a traitor would probably be much worse than it would be for just being a firenation lackey.

"What's the problem?" The man in front of me asked suddenly. I glanced up at Iroh who was looking at the sky in awe.

"Nothing" he replied quickly. "Actually, there is a bit of a problem." He spoke again. "My old joints are feeling sore and achy and these shackles are too loose."

"Too loose?" The earthbender asked in confusion.

"That's right. The cuffs are loose and they jangle around and bump my wrists. It would help me if you would tighten them so they wouldn't shake around so much" Iroh said, playing up his feeble old man act.

"Very well. Corporal, tighten the prisoner's hand cuffs." He said as the group came to a stop again. 

The corporal reached out to adjust the cuffs and Iroh quickly heated the metal and held the man's hand down on the hot metal. He screamed loudly and yanked his hand away from Iroh who immediately threw himself to the ground, kicking fire at the group of ostrich horses, and rolled down the side of the extremely high hill that we were traveling on.

"Stop him!" One of the men yelled, attempting to calm the animals as the others scrambled down the hill after Iroh.

"General Iroh!" I called out as I was thrown from from the back of the ostrich I was on and hit the ground with a hard thud. I got to my feet as fast as I could, but I didn't make it very far.

"Not so fast!" The man I punched earlier said as his large hand clamped down hard on my arm. 

I glared up at him, noticing the bruise that had formed around his eye. He looked at me like I was poop stuck to the bottom of his shoes and shoved me forward as we followed after the other men. 

"He is too dangerous, Captain. We can't just carry him to the capital. We have to do something now." One of the men said angrily, standing next to Iroh, who was currently buried up to his neck in a pile of dirt and rocks. 

"I agree. He must be dealt with immediately and severely" the captain said harshly.

The man holding me yanked me back a few steps as the others unburied Iroh and pulled him along. They found a generally flat area and lifted a large boulder from the ground with their bending. The captain roughly pushed Iroh to his knees and chained his hands down to the boulder.

"These dangerous hands must be crushed!" He said. I felt my stomach turn as he bended another giant boulder from the ground and moved it over Iroh's hands.

"Leave him alone!" I yelled, struggling against the jerk who refused to let go of me. "No!" I yelped as the captain released the boulder to fall down on Iroh's hands. 

The boulder was suddenly kicked away from Iroh and Zuko was standing in front of his uncle protectively. I gasped in surprise when he brought his heel down on the chains so hard that they shattered and released Iroh's hands.

"Excellent form, Prince Zuko" Iroh said proudly, getting into a fighting stance. 

"You taught me well" Zuko replied, glancing at each of his opponents briefly before his gaze landed on me. A chill went down my spine as an especially terrifying glare painted his face. I wasn't sure if it was directed at me or the guy who still had a painful grip on my arm, or maybe even both of us, but I wasn't looking forward to the aftermath if it was for me.

"Surrender yourselves, it's five against two. You're clearly outnumbered" the captain demanded. 

"Uh, that's true, but you are clearly outmatched!" Iroh said confidently as he whipped the chains that were still attached to his wrists. 

A couple of the earthbenders attacked Iroh and Zuko with their bending, but before I could see what happened I was yanked backwards and dropped to the ground by the jerk earthbender. I struggled to get up since my hands were still cuffed behind my back, but the sounds of fighting going on behind me had me on edge. 

I was barely sitting up when a strong hand clamped down on my arm and pulled me to my feet. The same earthbender, this time with a nervous expression, squeezed my jaw in his free hand and held me in front of him like some sort of shield.

"Stop!" He yelled at Zuko and Iroh who were advancing on him quickly. "Stop or I'll snap his neck!" He yelled frantically. I felt panic rise within me as Iroh and Zuko stood in place, glaring daggers at the earthbender. 

"Don't move a muscle!" He yelled again as he started walking backwards, dragging me along with him. 

"Wait, where are you taking me!?" I asked fearfully, flinching when he squeezed my jaw harder.

"Shut up!" He snapped as he continued pulling me backwards. Once we were about 20 feet away from where the fight took place he loosened his grip and took a deep breath. 

"Sorry kid" he mumbled, then threw me to the ground and took off running in the opposite direction.

"Coward!" Zuko growled as they both ran toward me.

"Are you ok Toshi?" Iroh asked, his voice laced with concern as he helped me up, while Zuko just stood there looking typically pissed off.

"Yeah" I mumbled as I got to my feet.

I followed Zuko and Iroh back to where they had knocked out the other earthbenders and waited as they searched them for the keys to the handcuffs. Zuko used the keys to remove the cuffs and chains from Iroh's wrists and he breathed a sigh of relief. 

"Thank you, nephew" he said cheerfully. 

"Now would you please go put on some clothes!" Zuko groaned and Iroh chuckled and started back towards the road ahead of us. 

Zuko walked behind me, holding my wrists steady with one hand as he unlocked the cuffs. 

"Thank you" I said with a relieved smile once my hands were free. I shook my hands around and wiggled my fingers so I could get feeling back, then rubbed my wrists that were red and sore from being cuffed for so long. 

"What?" I asked self-consciously when I noticed him staring at me.

"Are you sure you're ok?" He asked as he tossed the cuffs to the ground.

"I'm fine, my hands just went a little numb" I said wiggling my fingers again. "I'd be more worried about your uncle, he practically jumped off a cliff back there." 

"He'll be fine" Zuko said nonchalantly. "Come on, we need to get moving."

I nodded and followed Zuko back up to the road where Iroh stood, now fully clothed, next to Zuko's Komodo rhino. I froze in place as Zuko and Iroh stepped closer to the animal. They both paused and looked at me expectantly. Why did it always have to be a freaking giant Komodo rhino?

"What's the problem?" Zuko asked when I didn't move. 

"I can walk" I said nervously.

"What? Don't be stupid, it would take you days to get back to the ship!" Zuko said in frustration. 

"I'll be fine" I replied.

"There's no need to be afraid Toshi" Iroh said in a comforting tone.

"We don't have time for this!" Zuko snapped as he quickly walked over to me. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me closer to the giant rhino. "I have a lead on the Avatar and I won't let him get away again!" He continued as he grabbed my waist and effortlessly lifted me onto the rhino's saddle. 

I felt my cheeks get red as I gripped the front of the saddle tightly. Zuko then climbed on behind me and Iroh behind him. My heart immediately started pounding as Zuko leaned forward and reached around me to grab the reigns so he could steer the rhino in the right direction.

"Would you calm down" he said as the rhino took off running back in the direction we had come from. "It's not gonna hurt you." 

"I know that" I said indignantly as I loosened my death grip on the saddle and relaxed a little bit.

We rode the rest of the day in silence and by the time the sun had gone down we had finally reached the town where Zuko said he had seen the Avatar's bison flying around. After he quickly and rudely interrogated an old man he jumped back on the saddle and took off full speed back towards the town where the ship was docked. 

We rode for a while in the dark and I got to the point to where I could barely hold my eyes open anymore. I eventually just gave up and leaned back against Zuko's chest, passing out almost instantly.

•••

Hope y'all like it. I really love your comments, please keep them coming :)


	8. 8

Zuko:

I went stiff and glanced down when I felt the peasant lean back against me, my face flushed red when I realized he was practically sitting in my lap at this point. 

"Hey" I said trying to get his attention.

He yawned and mumbled something incoherent but didn't move. He was asleep. He seriously fell asleep on me!? I nudged his shoulder in an attempted to wake him up and quickly had to grab him as he started to slide right off of the saddle. I pulled him back upright and released my hold on him only to have to grab him again as started to fall again. 

"Insufferable peasant" I growled as I gave in and held him in place with one arm while I held the rhino's reigns with the other. I went completely rigid when I felt him suddenly wrapped his arms around my arm tightly and snuggle his face against my shoulder. 

I huffed in irritation and looked down at the sleeping peasant, a strange feeling rolling through me when I noticed the bruises on his face from that earthbender. Even in the dim moonlight you could clearly see where his hands had been on Toshi's face and neck. Anger flared as I thought about the cowardly earthbender that threatened to kill a scrawny little weakling rather than fight me like a man. 

But why did I care!? Why would I be concerned about what happens to him? I shouldn't care! It shouldn't effect me at all if he got killed by some earthbender. Which brings up the question of how he even got captured by the earthbenders to begin with. He was supposed to be going back to the ship with me.

"Uncle" I said, glancing behind me. He seemed distracted as he stared up at the night sky. 

"Uncle!" I said louder, effectively getting his attention.

"Yes?" He said.

"What happened the other day with the earthbenders?" I asked.

"I was just enjoying the hot springs when they snuck up on me." He shrugged.

"Then how did Toshi manage to get taken too?" I asked trying to mask my curiosity.

"Ah, that is an interesting question" He said rubbing his beard thoughtfully. "I'm not sure where he came from, I was already chained up, but he just came running out of nowhere and tackled one of the earthbenders to the ground and tried to fight him."

"You can't be serious" I said skeptically.

"I am" he said. "It was quite impressive, though he obviously isn't capable of fighting against five expert earthbenders, I think he has great potential."

"We'll see about that" I mumbled as I focused on the road, eager to get back to the ship and catch up to the Avatar.

Toki:

When I finally woke up the sun was already out and we had just reached the outskirts of town. When I opened my eyes I nearly jumped off the rhino when I realized the position I was in. Apparently I had almost fallen off the saddle in my sleep so Zuko was forced to hold me, and apparently my unconscious self took that as a cue to cuddle. It was extremely embarrassing, and was only made worse by the painfully awkward ride the rest of the way back to the ship. I was really wishing that earthbender would have just went ahead and killed me. 

It was a huge relief when we finally got back to the ship. Practically all of the crew members were waiting eagerly as the komodo rhino climbed the ramp into the front of the ship. 

"General Iroh!" Jee said, rushing forward as we climbed down from the rhino's back "we're relieved to have you back safe and sound." 

"Thank you Lieutenant Jee" he replied. "How about we make some tea to celebrate" he said earning a few chuckles from the crew.

"Toshi! What in Agni's name happened to you!" Kazuki asked looking very concerned. 

"What do you mean?" I asked in confusion. 

"You're covered in bruises!" He said dramatically.

I furrowed my eyebrows and walked over to a metal bucket that was sitting in the corner, picking it up and looking at my reflection in the shiny metal.

"Huh, I guess you're right" I shrugged and put the bucket back down. 

"Did that bratty prince do that to you?" He whispered harshly.

"What? No-" I started.

"I didn't touch him!" Zuko interrupted angrily, apparently having heard what Kazuki had said.

"Prince Zu-" I tried again.

"Then what happened to him?" Kazuki snapped impatiently.

"Kaz-"

"You better watch your tone when you talk to me!" Zuko interrupted me again and I rolled my eyes. They finally paused their arguing for a moment to glare at each other so I took my opportunity to change the subject.

"So, how about that Avatar, huh? He sure is one slippery fish!" I said and laughed lamely. 

They both turned to me with raised eyebrows and stared at me like I had grown a second head.

"I'm gonna go do my chores now" I mumbled and scurried out of the room as quickly as possible, ignoring the crew snickering behind my back.

A few hours later I was on deck sanding some rust off of the rails of the ship when Zuko burst through the door and walked across deck with determination. Iroh followed just behind him looking concerned.

"Sailing into Fire Nation waters. Of all the foolish things you have done in your 16 years, Prince Zuko, this is the most foolish." Iroh scolded.

"I have no choice, Uncle." Zuko said.

"Have you completely forgotten that the Fire Lord banished you!? What if you're caught!?" Iroh raised his voice angrily.  

"I'm chasing the Avatar. My father will understand why I'm returning home" Zuko said sounding hopeful.

"You give him too much credit. My brother is not the understanding type" Iroh sighed. 

"There they are! Helmsman, full steam ahead!" Zuko shouted suddenly, startling me and making me drop my sandpaper into the water. I sighed and walked up towards the front of the ship since I couldn't do my job anymore. I stared up at the huge bison flying through the sky in amazement, unsure if I would ever get used to such a strange sight.

"Raise the catapult!" Zuko commanded.

Suddenly a trap door opened up in the middle of the deck and a huge metal catapult lifted up from below deck. A few crew members loaded it with a big black ball and lit the ball on fire with their bending. 

"Really, Prince Zuko, couldn't you shoot them down with something more fragrant?" Iroh said, fanning the horrible smell away from his face. I coughed and covered my nose with my sleeve when the wind shifted the smell my way.

"On my mark...Fire!" Zuko commanded. 

Suddenly the catapult lurched forward, sending the flaming ball soaring through the air toward the bison. A smile spread across my face as the bison dodged the stink ball, but quickly fell when my eyes fell on two huge lines of ships in the distance. 

"A blockade!" Zuko said when he saw the line of ships also.

"Technically you are still in Earth Kingdom waters. Turn back now and they cannot arrest you." Iroh said hopefully.

"He's not turning around" Zuko said looking up at the Avatar's bison.

"Please Prince Zuko, if the Fire Nation captures you, there is nothing I can do. Do not follow the Avatar." Iroh said, desperately trying to reason with his nephew.

"I'm sorry, Uncle" Zuko said looking genuinely remorseful for disappointing his uncle. 

"Run the blockade!" He then commanded loudly. 

I gasped as the ships from the blockade suddenly started firing the same flaming balls at us that we had just shot at the Avatar. 

"Zuko!" I yelled in frustration as flaming stink rained down all around us. Why couldn't he just listen to his uncle for once? He was going to get us all killed! 

The entire ship suddenly lurched as the sound of crushing metal tore through the air. The ship noticably decreased in speed and smoke came pouring out of the rear deck.

"Prince Zuko, the engines are damaged! We need to stop and make repairs!" The senior engineer called out frantically. 

"Do not stop this ship!" Zuko yelled back looking up at the bison that had successfully made it past the line of ships and into the firenation.

"Zuko, we're on a collision course!" I said loudly when I noticed two of the much larger ships quickly closing the gap ahead of us.

"We can make it!" He said with determination. 

Suddenly the two ships ahead of us came to a halt and allowed us to pass between them. A tall muscular man with thick brown sideburns stood on the deck of one of the large ships, leering down at us. 

"Yeesh, who's the creep?" I mumbled uncomfortably.

"Commander Zhao" Zuko answered, glaring hatefully at Zhao who had a wicked smile as our ship sailed safely into firenation waters.

"What's he up to, Uncle? Why didn't Commander Zhao arrest me?" Zuko asked curiously.

"Because he wants to follow you. He knows you'll lead him to the prize you're both after. The Avatar" he said.

"If Zhao wants to follow our trail of smoke, then that's exactly what I'll let him do" Zuko said with a thoughtful expression.

"What're you planning?" I asked curiously.

"Come on" he said walking across the deck.

Iroh and I shared a curious glance before following him below deck. Zuko had grabbed a couple of other crewmen on our way to the back of the ship, claiming he would need their help with his plan. Zuko lead us into a large room that housed a small riverboat made of a lighter colored metal. I watched curiously as he and the two crewmen opened a door from the back of the ship that lowered into the water as a ramp for the small boat.

"Let's go" Zuko said, jumping on the small boat.

"Who, me?" I asked glancing around at the others who hadn't moved.

"Yes, you. Come on." Zuko said impatiently. 

"B-But why?" I stammered. 

"Because I'm still not letting you out of my sight! Now come on!" He said grabbing my wrist and yanking me onto the small boat.

"Please don't make me go." I practically begged as the boat was lowered into the water. Zuko just ignored me and looked up at his uncle who still stood on the ship.

"Uncle, keep heading north. Zhao will follow the smoke trail while we use it as a cover." He said confidently.

I stood in the middle of the small deck nervously while Zuko set the engine to full speed and turned us away from the ship.

"Where are we going anyway?" I asked, wondering what Zuko was dragging me into.

"Crescent Island" he replied. 

I sighed and sat down on the deck, watching the bison fly in the sky far ahead of us.

When we landed on the shore of the crescent island I quietly followed Zuko up the steps to the large temple. Zuko seemed to know where he was going so I just trailed behind him, taking in the artistic details of the beautiful temple. We climbed a tall flight of stairs and paused when we heard voices echoing ahead of us. We crept up the last few stairs and peeked around the corner into a huge room filled with stone pillars and a big ornate door in the middle. There were currently five men in robes firebending at the door while a bald kid in orange and yellow clothes and a water tribe boy and girl close to my age hid behind a couple of the tall stone pillars.

"The Avatar!" Zuko hissed, glaring at the bald kid.

"Wait, seriously?" I whispered. "That little kid is the big bad Avatar you've been after?" 

"He's a lot stronger than he looks!" Zuko whispered defensively.

"It's the Avatar's lemur! He must have crawled through the pipes! We've been tricked!" One of the robed men yelled angrily and I noticed they had just gotten the big doors open. 

Before I knew what was happening, Zuko rushed forward and grabbed the Avatar's arms, pinning them roughly behind his back so he couldn't move. 

I watched as a lemur attacked one of the men while the two water tribe kids and one of the men in robes quickly subdued the other robed men. They all turned towards the pillar that Zuko and the avatar were hiding behind expectantly.

"Now, Aang!" The man yelled, looking worried when the Avatar didn't come out.

"Aang! Now's your chance!" The water tribe girl yelled.

"The Avatar's coming with me!" Zuko announced as he pushed the avatar around the pillar, still holding his arms behind his back. I couldn't help but feel bad for the kid, I know first hand how uncomfortable that is.

Suddenly the men who were being subdued quickly started to overtake their opponents and moved the water tribe kids to one of the pillars and chained them to it.

"Close the doors! Quickly!" Zuko commanded as he pulled the Avatar toward where I was still sitting on the stairs. Panic flashed across the younger boy's face as he began to struggle in Zuko's grasp. The next thing I knew a powerful blast of air sent Zuko flying down the stairs and the Avatar took off running towards the door.

"Zuko!" I called nervously as I ran down the stairs to where he had landed. 

"Are you ok?" I asked as I helped him sit up.

"I'm fine! Why didn't you go after the Avatar!?" He asked angrily.

"What?" I asked, taken aback by his ungrateful attitude. "He just threw you down a flight of stairs like it was nothing! You really think I'd stand a chance against that?" A look of realization crossed his face and he quickly got to his feet.

"Come on" he mumbled and charged up the stairs angrily. I sighed heavily and followed him back up to the big room. 

Zuko and four of the robed men shot strong fire blasts at the door, looking confused when it didn't open.

"Why isn't it working? It's sealed shut!" Zuko said.

"It must have been the light. Avatar Roku doesn't want us inside." One of the men stated.

"Why did you help the Avatar?" Zuko snapped, turning on the man who had betrayed his companions.

"Because it was once the Sages' duty. It is still our duty." He replied sadly.

Loud clapping suddenly echoed through the room and everyone turned their attention toward the source.

"What a moving and heartfelt performance." That Zhao guy said as he walked closer to all of us followed by a huge group of soldiers. "I'm certain the Fire Lord will understand when you explain why you betrayed him."

"Commander Zhao!" One of the sages said bowing respectfully.

"And Prince Zuko, it was a noble effort. But your little smoke screen didn't work." Zhao said with a wicked grin. "Two traitors, in one day, the Fire Lord will be pleased."

I flinched when I felt strong hands suddenly clamp down on my wrists and pull my arms behind my back. When I looked at Zuko there was a soldier doing the same to him, holding him back as he lunged at Zhao angrily.

"You're too late, Zhao. The Avatar's inside and the doors are sealed" Zuko said.

"No matter. Sooner or later, he has to come out" he said smugly.

The soldiers immediately pulled Zuko and I over to one of the pillars and chained us up also.

"Don't worry Prince Zuko, I'm sure if you behave your father will allow you to bring your little pet to prison with you." Zhao said glancing me over with an unimpressed face.

"Prison!?" I squeaked nervously. Great! Just great! I knew letting Zuko drag me here was a horrible idea!

"Zuko's pet?" The water tribe boy snorted.

"Shut your mouth, water tribe peasant!" Zuko growled angrily and I rolled my eyes. 

"When those doors open, unleash all your fire power" Zhao said as he and his men positioned themselves in front of the door defensively.

"How's Aang going to make it out of this?" The water tribe girl asked nervously.

"How're we going to make it out of this?" The boy countered.

"Ready" Zhao said in anticipation when the doors began glowing brightly. Smoke rolled out from under the doors as they began to open slowly.

"No! Aang!" The water tribe girl cried out dramatically.

"Fire!" Zhao yelled and he and his men blasted fire into the room. 

Suddenly an old man appeared in the doorway, bending the fire around him in a large circle.

"Avatar Roku!" One of the sages gasped in awe.

I froze in terror as Roku sent a blast of bright hot fire through the room, knocking Zhao and his men to the ground and melting the chains that held us in place.

The moment the chains around us loosened Zuko grabbed my hand and took off running, dragging me along with him. I ran as fast as I could to keep up with him as he pulled me through the maze of hallways and down the stairs towards the shore where our little boat sat waiting. I yelped as he practically threw me onto the boat and immediately jumped on behind me. The minute we were safely speeding away from the exploding island I turned toward Zuko with a glare.

"You almost got me arrested you jerk!" I snapped angrily.

"Stop whining" he said dismissively as he looked at the sky through a spyglass.

"I'm not whining!" I yelled, stomping over to Zuko and jabbing my finger in his chest roughly. "I don't get why you forced me to come with you! It was completely pointless! I can't bend, I can't fight, I'm of no use to you!" 

"Not for long" he said, slapping my hand away from his chest.

"Huh?" I blinked in surprise.

"We should be back to the ship soon" he said changing the subject.

"Wait, Zuko, what did you mean?" I asked curiously but he ignored me and walked inside the small cabin of the boat.

"Jerk" I mumbled and sat down on the deck.


	9. 9

I sighed as I sank down in a bath, letting the hot water relax my aching muscles. 

Apparently Iroh had mentioned to Zuko that I had the potential to be a good fighter, and after our failure at Crescent Island, Zuko decided that Iroh would begin training me. He said it was so I wouldn't be so useless to him while he hunted the Avatar, but Iroh said it was so I could be more capable of protecting myself. 

Whatever the reason was, I was kind of glad for it. As it turns out, Iroh was right, much to my surprise. I had caught on fairly quickly over the last few weeks and I was already doing better when sparring. I thought I would be training with Zuko, but he flat out refused, so Iroh had me spar against Kazuki. It really seemed to irritate Zuko.

And speaking of Zuko, he was still acting strange, but it was different now. He was tolerating my presence a lot better now, but he was really weird about personal space. It seemed like he was really uncomfortable with me for some reason. He still wouldn't let me out of his sight either, which made no sense to me, and made getting my work done nearly impossible most days. But it wasn't all bad. Somewhere along the way Zuko had calmed down on the screaming in my face problem. Not that he had stopped completely, I didn't think he ever would, but at least it wasn't a constant anymore.

I sighed sadly when my bathwater started to get cold. It was times like this that I wished to be a firebender, eternally warm baths would be amazing. But sadly I would never know that luxury, so I quickly washed myself and got out of the small tub. 

I studied myself in the mirror that was bolted to the wall on one side of the small washroom as I dried off. These last few months of eating good food and training we're really starting to show. I was starting to fill out a little, I wasn't so much skin and bones anymore, which worried me a little bit. I wasn't sure how much longer I would be able to keep up the act. I tossed my towel aside and wrapped my chest as usual, glad that that area hadn't had too much "filling out" so it was still fairly easy to hide. It also helped that Iroh had dug up some of Zuko's old clothes that he had outgrown a few years ago from the ships storage for me, they were looser on me than my other ones so they really helped to hide pretty much everything.

Once I was fully dressed I walked over to the kitchen for some breakfast before Zuko could wake up and demand my presence on deck for training.

I was surprised when I got to the kitchen to find it completely untouched and no food being prepared. Ryota was never late starting a meal, something must be wrong. It was still early enough that I figured I would be able to make something simple for breakfast before most of the crew woke up. It's the least I could do. 

I quickly got a kettle of water on the stove so it could start boiling and dug around in the pantry to see what was available. The only thing that would be ready quick enough was porridge so that's what I decided to make. It didn't take long for the food to finish and for the crew to show up. They were all pretty surprised to find a hot breakfast waiting for them as they had informed me that Ryota had come down with some kind of cold and was currently resting in his room.

I made some of Iroh's favorite tea and a couple bowls of the porridge and put it all on a tray.

"Hey, can someone bring this up for me?" I called into the dining room as I lifted the tray carefully. 

"I'll do it" Kazuki stepped up and took the tray from me.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" I asked.

"Toshi, I'll be fine as long as that bratty prince doesn't start running his mouth." Kazuki said rolling his eyes.

"Just don't instigate please" I sighed.

"I won't" he said. "Honestly Toshi, I don't know why you put up with him. If he treated any of us they way he does you, we would have ducked out at the nearest port a long time ago."

I just smiled politely and watched Kazuki carry the tray out of the dining room. In all honesty, I had tried leaving a couple of times over the last few weeks, but I always ended up running into Zuko before I could get very far. I wasn't sure how he had always managed to "coincidentally" run into me, but I found myself feeling slightly more okay with it each time. 

It was a strange feeling. I had been so ready to get off this ship, but when I finally had a chance I found myself hesitating. I had a good thing going for me right now. A roof over my head and a bed of my own. Three good meals a day and steady pay. Security. When I leave, I wouldn't have any of that. And it's not like being here was really so bad. So I had to put up with the occasional Royal temper tantrum. So what? Its not like he was a total jerk all of the time. We had actually managed to have a few decent conversations over the last few weeks. It was weird to say, but sometimes he actually made pretty decent company to be around, though it was usually only when he was tired and didn't have the energy to yell. And so what if he was still trying to figure out my secret, I had already decided that I didn't care whether he did or not.

Besides, I was learning important skills that I would eventually need when I was on my own, like fighting. It really just made more sense in the long run for me to stay for a while.

"Hey Toshi" one of the crewmen said with a big grin as he handed me his empty bowl. "Thanks for breakfast."

"You're welcome" I said with a smile as I put his bowl in the sink of soapy water to be washed.

"So, uh...what're you making for lunch?" He asked curiously.

"Uh, I hadn't really thought about lunch" I shrugged.

"I think Ryota had planned some bao buns and rice for lunch and maybe a stew for dinner. If that helps any." he said.

"Oh, ok. That shouldn't be too hard." I smiled. He nodded and left to get to his work. 

After everyone was done I quickly wiped the tables clean and started washing the dirty dishes. It was lucky for me that there wasn't a very large crew on Zuko's ship, maybe a little more than a dozen men plus Zuko and Iroh, so there wasn't a whole lot to do.

"What're you doing?" Zuko's voice cut through the silence, making me jump.

"What does it look like?" I rolled my eyes and dried the bowl I had been washing.

"You missed training this morning" he pointed out.

"Well, Ryota is sick and someone had to make breakfast" I mumbled as I continued washing.

"How long until you're finished?" He asked impatiently.

"After supper tonight. Why?" I sighed, mentally bracing myself for his temper.

"You know why" he snapped. "And I refuse to spend the whole day down here. I've got more important things to do."

"Well someone has to cook for the crew today" I shrugged. "So the way I see it, you can either leave, or you can have a seat and deal with it." I gestured towards a wooden stool sitting in the corner of the room.

The silence that followed had me thinking he had left, so I was more than surprised when I heard him shuffle across the room and sit down. I glanced at him and had to hold back a laugh at the sight. Zuko was sitting on the stool with his arms crossed, sulking like a child in time out.

Once the dishes were done I pulled the ingredients that I needed for lunch out of the pantry. I was very aware of Zuko watching me as I went about my work.

"How do you know how to do that?" He suddenly spoke up.

"Chop vegetables?" I asked, confused.

"No, not chopping vegetables, cooking" he specified.

"Oh. I learned when I was young" I shrugged.

"As a hobby or something?" He continued. I glanced up at him, surprised by his sudden interest, but decided not to question it too much. It was nice to have a decent conversation with him. Even if he did have ulterior motives. 

"No. Not a hobby. I actually hate cooking. It's too tedious and time consuming. But I suppose it's a good skill to have." 

"If you hate it so much then why did you learn it" he pressed. 

I rolled my eyes at his persistence. Clearly he wasn't going to accept me skirting around his questions. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to give him a few straight answers, not like it would help him figure anything out like he was probably hoping. 

"It was my job, I had to learn" I answered.

"Your job?" He asked curiously. "Where did you work?"

"A tavern" I said. "And an Inn"

"You worked at a tavern as a child?" He asked, a mix of surprise and confusion written all over his face. "Was it a family business?" 

"I have no family" the words came out sounding more bitter than I had intended. 

Zuko didn't even need to respond for me to know I had piqued his curiosity, the look on his face gave it all away. He really was like an open book when his guard was down. 

"My father died in the war when I very young, I never really knew him. My mother was...absent. She was there physically, but she wasn't there, so I guess I never really knew her either. I think she figured that she wasn't suited to life as a single mother, or maybe she didn't want to be stuck with the reminder of her dead husband, I've never figured it out. She took me to a tavern the next town over, the man who owned the place was known for taking in orphans of war and putting them to work. I think I was maybe four or five years old. I never saw her again." 

"How did you end up here?" Zuko asked as he stood up and stepped closer so he could see what I was doing. 

My heart started beating faster as he hovered over me, watching my every move as I chopped the last of the vegetables. The room suddenly seemed very small with him standing so close to me. I took a steadying breath to calm my nerves as I carefully thought out an explanation that would tell him enough without really giving anything away.

"The man who owned the place was horrible. He had this rule for once you reached a certain age. The girls were forced into prostitution and boys were kicked out, told to never come back" I said. It was the truth, Zuko just didn't know which side of it I was really on.

"There are really places that do that sort of thing?" He asked in disbelief.

"I'm surprised you haven't witnessed it yourself, you've traveled the world haven't you" I said as I moved the chopped vegetables to a different counter and started making a dough for the buns.

"I don't go into places like that!" He said defensively as his cheeks turned pink.

"I don't know what you do in your spare time" I shrugged my shoulders.

"Yes you do" he mumbled.

"What's the deal with the Avatar anyway? Why do you want to catch him so badly?" I asked curiously.

"I need to capture the Avatar and bring him to my father to restore my honor" he said seriously. 

"Restore your honor?" I raised my eyebrows in confusion. "I wasn't aware honor was something that could be taken away."

"Well it is" he said.

"Well I-" I started, but was interrupted when the ship suddenly lurched to one side, throwing me off balance. 

I yelped as I slammed into Zuko and both of us fell to the floor. The room filled with thunderous bangs and crashes as all the metal pans slid off the counters and dishes fell out of the cabinets. I sat completely frozen, halfway straddling Zuko, our faces only inches apart. My breath caught in my throat as I stared into his burning Amber eyes. Warmth bubbled up in my chest and I was suddenly very aware of every point of contact between us. His leg between mine, my hand on his chest, his hand on my thigh, even his warm breath that made my lips tingle. He smelled of fire and spice and it was all suddenly very overwhelming. 

I cleared my throat awkwardly as my brain finally decided to reconnect with my body and I carefully crawled off of him and got to my feet. 

"What the hell just happened" I muttered, staring at my now spilled bowl of chopped vegetables dejectedly. 

"Someone's changing our course!" Zuko snapped angrily as he jumped to his feet and stormed out of the kitchen. 

"Don't follow him. Don't follow him" I repeated to myself then groaned as my curiosity got the better of me and I rushed out of the kitchen after him.

"What's the meaning of this mutiny? No one told you to change course!" I heard Zuko's voice echo down the hallway as I approached the bridge.

"Actually, someone did" Iroh spoke up as I stepped into the room. "I assure you it is a matter of utmost importance, Prince Zuko."

"Is it something to do with the Avatar?" He asked curiously.

"Even more urgent. It seems I've lost my lotus tile" he said sheepishly.

"Lotus tile?" I piped up, catching Zuko by surprise. He looked pretty uncomfortable and quickly took two steps away from me. Iroh seemed intrigued by Zuko's behavior but thankfully didn't say anything about it.

"For my Pai Sho game" he explained. "Most people think the lotus tile insignificant, but it is essential for the unusual strategy that I employ."

"You've changed our course for a stupid lotus tile?" Zuko asked in disbelief.

"See, you, like most people, underestimate its value. Just give me ten minutes to check the merchants at this port of call. Hopefully they'll have the lotus tile in stock and I can get on with my life!" Iroh said. 

Zuko yelled out in frustration, filling the room with smoke and embers.

"I'm lucky to have such an understanding nephew" Iroh said over cheerfully. 

I coughed as the smoke spread through the room and choked me. I quickly made for the exit, taking a deep breath once I was back in the hallway.

I spent the time before we reached port cleaning up the disaster that was the kitchen. I let my mind wander while I cleaned and felt my cheeks heat up as I thought about what happened with Zuko earlier. I had desperately wanted to kiss him, but why? Why do feel this way about him? He is the freaking Prince of the Firenation! Of all the people in the whole entire world for me to feel this way about, why did it have to he him? He thinks I'm a boy! And if he find out I really am a girl he would probably hate me for tricking him for so long. There's no way this was going to end well. 

•••

So I have a basic plan for when and how Zuko will find out she is a girl. I'm excited. I really hope y'all are enjoying the story and I really love reading your comments. Thanks guys! :)


	10. 10

"I've checked all the shops on this pier. Not a lotus tile in the entire marketplace." Iroh sighed. 

We had already spent majority of the day in the market and to say Zuko was on edge would be an understatement.

"It's good to know this trip was a complete waste of time for everyone!" Zuko barked angrily.

"Quite the contrary. I always say the only thing better than finding something you were looking for, is finding something you weren't looking for at a great bargain!" Iroh smiled cheerfully as the crew struggled to carry all of Iroh's frivolous purchases back to the ship.

"You bought a tsungi horn?" Zuko asked in confusion.

"For music night on the ship. Now, if we only had some woodwinds." He said as we continued walking through the market.

"Music night?" I asked curiously. "Since when is there a music night?" 

"We have music night on deck at least twice a month" Iroh explained. "Kazuki has tried inviting you before, but he said you were busy catching up on your chores."

"Oh" I mumbled.

"Catching up?" Zuko asked suddenly. "Why would you need to catch up on chores?" 

I glanced at him, surprised that he was speaking to me since he had been actively avoiding even looking in my direction since the kitchen incident.

"Well I can't exactly get my work done when I'm not allowed to go below deck most days" I rolled my eyes. Had he really not realized that I still had a job to do?

Judging by the look on his face, I guess he hadn't.

"I thought Jee got other people to handle it" he said, glancing at his uncle.

"He has been doing his best" Iroh explained, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "But the other men have their own jobs to do. That's why he hired Toshi to begin with, because we needed someone to do the extra work."

I could feel Zuko's eyes on me as Iroh spoke but as soon as I looked up he turned away. 

"Oh, This place looks promising!" Iroh suddenly said as we approached a small ship with some seedy looking men standing around outside.

I looked around at the eclectic collections of weapons and scrolls from all over the world. Some very expensive looking jewelry caught my eye and I felt my stomach twist nervously. These guys had to be pirates to have so much expensive stuff in their possession. I walked over to Iroh and noticed he was holding a creepy looking monkey statue.

"Ooo! That is handsome!" Iroh gushed. "Wouldn't it look magnificent in the galley?" 

"Uuh..." I was honestly lost for words. He really liked that freaky monkey.

"No" Zuko said bluntly.

I noticed some of the men from outside had come in and gathered in the back corner to talk to a tall man with a terrifying reptile bird on his shoulder. The captain most likely.

"We lost the Water Tribe girl and the little bald monk she was traveling with" a man with a long stringy mustache said in a hushed tone. Unfortunately it wasn't quiet enough as Zuko immediately walked over to the group of men.

"This monk, did he have an arrow on his head?" Zuko asked.

"Oh no" I groaned. There's no way getting involved with pirates would end well for us. 

I stood by silently as Zuko made a deal with the pirates, they would team up and find the kids who stole a waterbending scroll. The pirates would get their scroll and the water tribe thief, and Zuko would get the monk. I hated how they bartered over them like they were expensive objects, but I wasn't really in much of a position to say anything about it. 

Once the negotiations were agreed upon, we went back to our ship and got the small riverboat and a few crewmen so we could join the pirates in the search. And of course, as much as I begged not to go, Zuko drug me along with them.

We met up with the pirates, and the captain plus a few of his men joined us on our boat as we traveled along the shores in search of the Avatar. I noticed the pirate captain eyeing me curiously for a while before he finally spoke up.

"You got a pretty innocent little face, don't ya boy" he said, leaning closer to see me better in the dim light.

"W-What?" I stammered nervously.

"Ya ever think about a change in profession? Sweet lil face like yers would be real easy to gain people's trust with." He explained. "You'd be a perfect addition to our operation."

"I don't think-" I started.

"How much are they payin ya? I could double it!" He offered with a wicked smile.

"He already has a job!" Zuko snapped, grabbing me by the arm and shoving me behind him towards Iroh.

"Awfully protective of the lad aren't ya?" The captain chuckled.

"Why don't you stop trying to pilfer my crew and focus on finding the monk!" Zuko growled.

"Fine, but shouldn't we stop to search the woods?" He asked.

"We don't need to stop. They stole a waterbending scroll, right?" Zuko asked and the captain nodded. "Then they'll be on the water." 

"Ugh! Stupid water!" The water tribe girl's voice suddenly echoed from the shore just ahead of us. 

The minute our boat touched land the pirates jumped off to chase down the girl, with Zuko right on their heels. Iroh and I weren't in any rush to get mixed up in the middle of a fight, so we took our time following them. By the time we pushed our way through the thick bushes Zuko and the pirates we're tying the girl to a tree.

"Tell me where he is and I won't hurt you or your brother" Zuko demanded.

"Go jump in the river!" She snapped, glaring at Zuko hatefully. I glanced at Zuko curiously when he didn't immediately lose his temper and yell at her. To my surprise, he didn't look upset in the slightest.

"Try to understand," he said as he walked around the tree she was tied to and stopped behind her. "I need to capture the Avatar to restore something I've lost. My honor."

I felt my stomach twist uncomfortably as I watched the scene. The way he was leaning so close to her, practically whispering in her ear, really bothered me more than it should have. 

"Perhaps in exchange I can restore something you've lost" he said as he held a blue ribbon with a smooth round charm up in front of her.

I squeezed my hands together tightly, so tight that my fingers turned white and went numb, as jealousy reared its ugly head. Why was Zuko standing there with his arms practically wrapped around this girl? I thought she was his enemy.

"My mother's necklace! How did you get that?" She asked accusingly as Zuko dropped his arms and walked back in front of her. 

"I didn't steal it, if that's what you're wondering" he said as he tucked the necklace back in his pocket. "Tell me where he is."

"No!" She refused again.

"Enough of this necklace garbage" the pirate Captain growled. It took everything in me not to verbally agree with him. "You promised the scroll!"

"I wonder how much money this is worth?" Zuko asked as he lit a flame in his hand and held it just inches away from the scroll, smiling in satisfaction as the pirates froze nervously. "A lot, apparently. Now you help me find what I want, you'll get this back and everyone goes home happy. Search the woods for the boy and meet back here."

"Fine" they agreed.

"Toshi, is everything ok?" Iroh asked me quietly.

"Yes, everything is fine" I said innocently. I had no right to be feeling jealous, and I had no intentions of letting Iroh find out the truth. 

"I just don't do well with hostage situations" I mumbled, hoping he would buy my excuse.

"Yes, it is quite unfortunate that it has come to this" he said with a look that told me he knew I was lying but wasn't going to question it. 

The pirates returned a few minutes later with the Avatar and water tribe boy in tow.

"Aang, I'm so sorry, this is all my fault" the water tribe girl said sadly. 

"No, Katara it isn't" he replied.

"Yeh, it kind of is" Iroh shrugged and I had to hold back a laugh. Only Iroh.

"Give me the boy" Zuko demanded.

"You give us the scroll" the captain countered.

"You're really gonna hand over the Avatar for a stupid piece of parchment!?" The water tribe boy said suddenly.

"Don't listen to him! He's trying to turn us against each other" Zuko said angrily, which only made the pirates more interested in what he was saying.

"Your friend is the Avatar?" The pirate asked curiously. 

"Sure is, and I'll bet he'll fetch a lot more on the black market then that fancy scroll" the boy continued. I furrowed my brow as i watched him basically sell out his friend. He must have a lot of confidence in whatever plan he had thought up.

"Shut your mouth, you water tribe peasant!" Zuko snapped.

"Yeah, Sokka, you really should shut your mouth" Aang said, desperately trying to get his friend to stop talking. 

"I'm just sayin', it's bad business sense." Sokka continued with a sly smile.

"Alright, how bout this then" the pirate turned to Zuko again "the scroll and the lad with the sweet little face in exchange for the Avatar" he said with a wicked smile.

"That wasn't our deal!" Zuko growled in frustration.

"Who needs a deal with him?" Sokka piped up again. "Just imagine how much the Fire Lord would pay for the Avatar. You guys would be set for life!"

"Keep the scroll! We can buy a hundred with the reward we will get for the kid" the pirate said, playing right into the boys hand.

"You'll regret breaking a deal with me!" Zuko hissed as he and the crew attacked. 

The pirates threw several smoke bombs in the clearing obscuring most of the fight as I cautiously backed away from the fight.

The smoke slowly started to clear and I noticed the avatar and his friends were gone. Iroh suddenly walked over to where Zuko and the captain we're fighting, effortlessly breaking them up.

"Are you so busy fighting you cannot see your own ship has set sail?" He asked sternly.

"We have no time for your proverbs, Uncle!" Zuko yelled.

"It's no proverb" he said, pointing to the pirate's ship that had been stolen by the avatar and his friends and was currently sailing down the river.

"Bleeding hog-monkeys!" The captain yelled in shock as he ran after his ship.

Just when I thought everything was calming down, a big burly pirate grabbed me roughly and tossed me over his shoulder as he ran towards Zuko's boat.

"Hey! Put me down you creep!" I yelled as I kicked and struggled in the man's iron grasp. He jumped on board the boat just as the other pirates got it started and quickly pulled it away from the shore.

"Toshi!" Zuko yelled as he chased after us.

"Let me go!" I yelled as I swung my elbow down on the back of the pirates head with every bit of strength I had. Unfortunately it only managed to irritate him. He cursed angrily and started to lift me off of his shoulder, so I took a chance and brought my knee up as fast as I could, slamming it into his nose. He yelled in pain as blood poured from his nose and roughly threw me away from him before I could do any more damage. I hit the metal with a hard thud and immediately scrambled to my feet.

"You're going to regret that you little brat!" He yelled angrily and lunged for me. I jumped away from him and did the only thing I could think to do to get away from him. 

"ZUKO!" I yelled as I ran across the deck as fast as I could. Zuko paused in his chase from the shore, gaping in surprised as I threw myself off the deck of the boat and hit the water. 

I kicked my feet against the strong current, desperately trying to swim to the surface, but failing miserably. I felt relief flood through me as Zuko appeared in front to me, snatching my hand and quickly pulling me up to the surface. A small smile crept across my face as my lungs filled with air and it stayed the whole time Zuko swam us safely to the shore.

"What is wrong with you!? Do you have a death wish or something!?" Zuko yelled as he drug me out of the water by my arm. "What're you smiling for!?" 

"I'm just glad you didn't let me drown."

Suddenly screaming echoed in the air and we turned our attention to the river. Zuko's boat had slammed into the pirate's ship and they both suddenly fell over a waterfall.

"My boat!" Zuko yelled angrily as he ran to the edge and looked down at his destroyed boat.

"Hehe, Prince Zuko, you're really going to get a kick out of this" Iroh said suddenly with a huge smile. "The lotus tile was in my sleeve the whole time!" He said holding it out proudly for Zuko to see. Zuko angrily snatched the lotus tile from his uncle and tossed it over the waterfall as hard as he could.

"That seemed unnecessary" I said rolling my eyes at his typical overreaction.

"Who asked you!?!" He snapped as he shoved past me and walked along the shore back in the direction we came from.

Iroh and I quietly followed him all the way back to the port and I went straight to my room to change and go to bed. It had been a long day and I was exhausted.

•••

I feel like this chapter is total poop so I apologize. My youngest daughter is sick and it's nearly impossible to find time to write. But I have plans for the next chapter that will hopefully make up for it, so bear with me. Thank you :)


	11. 11

Zuko:

I grumbled to myself as I walked through the silent ship. When I finally found the door I was searching for I raised my fist and banged on the metal as hard as I could. I smirked as I heard a thud come from inside followed by cursing.

"Just a second" Toshi groaned, sounding tired.

A minute later the lock clicked and he pulled the door open with a sour expression.

"Zuko?" He asked looking confused.

"It's time for training" I said crossing my arms impatiently.

"But I don't usually train until later" he stated.

"Not anymore" I said. "Clearly whatever Uncle has been teaching you isn't working, so I'm training you now."

"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked.

"You were useless against the pirates the other day and you almost got kidnapped" I said seriously.

"What? I got away from that big jerk all by myself! That's way better than where I used to be." He said defensively.

"You got lucky. You've been training for weeks, you should be able to do more than just rely on luck. Now come on!" I said, grabbing his arm and pulling him along with me.

"I'm not useless" he grumbled as I pulled him along to the deck.

I released his arm as we walked across the deck in the early morning light. It was already starting to get hot out so I pulled my shirt off and tossed it aside so I wouldn't get sweaty.

"Alright, get in your stance" I said as I turned to face him. He immediately turned away from me and I raised my eyebrows. Did I seriously make him mad that easily?

"I've already gone over proper form with Iroh" he mumbled as he spread his feet and raised his arms. It was definitely better that when I had first trained with him, but it was still weak.

"Obviously not enough" I commented as I walked closer to him.

I stepped around him and grabbed his shoulders, straightening his posture to give him better balance.

"You need to keep your arms up, it's important to protect your face" I instructed as I walked back in front of him. His gaze was still fixed on the floor as I adjusted his arms to the proper position.

"And you need to pay attention, you can't see what's coming if you're staring at the floor the whole time!" It was really starting to irritate me that he refused to look at me.

He finally shifted his gaze away from the floor and his large hazel eyes locked onto mine. It always struck me the way he would look at me, actually look at me, not just stare at my scar like everyone else.

"Ok, what next?" He shifted uncomfortably as a blush lightly colored his cheeks. He seemed to be on edge today, which was unusual for him. If anything, it was usually me that was on edge.

"Let's see what you've got" I challenged him and raised my arms in preparation.

He shifted his right foot forward slightly and I quickly stepped back just in time to dodge a surprisingly fast punch. He swung again and I dodged again.

"You need to loosen up, you're too stiff!" I said as I blocked a few more swings. He jumped forward and kicked his foot towards my head. I immediately grabbed his leg and pushed him backwards. He fell to the deck with a thud and groaned in frustration.

"Don't just lay there, get up!"

"Zuko, it's too early for all this" he groaned. "I haven't even had breakfast yet."

"Do you think earthbenders will care if you're tired? Do you think pirates will care if you're hungry?" I snapped. why was he being so difficult today? He never seemed to have a problem training with my uncle. 

"You can't just give up because you're not feeling up to it!"

"Look, I know you think I'm worthless, but I've been working my ass off to get stronger! I'm sorry it hasn't happened over night your majesty." he snapped angrily and sat up to glare at me.

"No one said you're worthless, I just said you can't give up!" I replied sternly.

A strange look crossed his face for a second before he jumped to his feet and started walking away.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" I called as I started after him.

"I'm done training today" he stated bluntly as he went below deck.

I felt steam rise from my clenched fists as I sped up to catch up with him.

"What is wrong with you?" I said as I grabbed his arm and turned him to face me. "Why are you acting like this?"

"I just don't want to train today" he said defensively.

"You're lying! I'm not letting you go anywhere until you talk to me!" I demanded, slightly tightening my grip on his arm to prove my point.

He struggled in my grasp for a moment before finally giving up and sighing in defeat. 

"Well?"

He looked up at me, his eyes burning holes through me, and immediately my mind flashed back to that day in the kitchen. It was strange. It almost seemed like he wanted to--No! Tension filled the air as I struggled to push the blasphemous thoughts from my mind. I couldn't let myself think like that.

But it was incredibly difficult with Toshi looking at me like that. But why was he looking at me like that? And why did it seem like he was so much closer to me now than before? 

He suddenly lifted himself up on his tiptoes and I froze in place as he pressed his lips against mine. My mind immediately went blank and my body reacted on its own. By the time my brain finally caught up, I had a hand full of silky brown hair and all I could focus on was was the way his mouth moved against mine. His lips were surprisingly soft for a guy. A guy...

My eyes snapped open as I realized what I was doing. I jerked away from him harshly and took several steps back, eyes wide and mouth agape. Toshi stood frozen in utter shock as his cheeks turned bright red.

I quickly turned around and rushed away from him. My footsteps echoed through the hallway as I turned the corner and hurried to my room. As soon as the door was safely locked behind me I released a shaky breath.

What just happened? Toshi just KISSED me? And I kissed him back!? Why would I do that!? And why did I like it so much!?

"Ugh, what is wrong with me?" I groaned, rubbing my hands across my face roughly. 

Why did I feel this way? Toshi is a GUY! Why would he kiss me like that? What was he thinking? Maybe he liked it too?

I nearly slapped myself for even thinking that. It didn't matter! The only thing that matters is capturing the Avatar to restore my honor! Not further dishonoring myself with something like this! There's no way I would ever gain my father's approval if he ever found out about this!

I jumped as someone suddenly knocked on my door.

"What?" I snapped.

"Good morning Prince Zuko!" My uncle called cheerfully through the door. "Shall we head up to the deck and start your training?" 

"Not now uncle!" I yelled.

Toki:

I stood in the hallway replaying what happened in my head over and over again. Why did I do that? What in spirits name possessed me to do something so stupid? I mean yeah, I really, really wanted to do it, and it was amazing while it lasted, but I had never intended to actually act on my feelings! But he kissed me back. Why would he do that? 

My heart ached as I remembered the look of horror on Zuko's face and the way he practically ran away from me. Of course he ran away from me, he thinks I'm a boy! It was stupid for me to think he actually wanted to kiss me back! He would never be okay with that! 

Maybe I could just tell him the truth? Not that it would really make much of a difference, I was sure he hated me now, or at the very least would never want to speak to me again.

"Hey Toshi, there you are!" Kazuki's voice echoed behind me. 

"Hey" I said softly as I turned to face him.

"Woah, are you okay?" He asked. 

"Yes. Why?"

"You just...kind of looked like you were about to cry" he said cautiously.

"Oh, no. I was just thinking about something" I said, forcing a smile. "So, what's up?" 

"Ryota sent me to find you, he needs help preparing breakfast."

"Okay" I said cheerfully, gladly taking the distraction from my thoughts. 

I trudged through my morning chores trying to ignore the sick feeling in my stomach. I had never felt so guilty about something before and it was really bothering me.

"Toshi" Lieutenant Jee said as he walked into the room. "What're you doing?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

I glanced down at the spot on the floor that I had been absent mindedly mopping for the past ten minutes. 

"There was a grease stain" I said quickly, trying not to look even more foolish than I already felt. 

"Well, I think you got it" he chuckled. "Come on, general Iroh has a job for us to do on deck."

"Okay" I said, moving my mop and bucket to the corner of the room and following Jee up to the deck. 

"Prince Zuko, consider the safety of the crew" Iroh's voice echoed down the stairwell as Jee and I made our way up the last few steps.

"The safety of the crew doesn't matter!" Zuko snapped, right as we stepped on to the deck. 

I felt my cheeks turning pink as my stupid brain replayed the scene from this morning for the millionth time. I quickly turned my head and looked down at the floor.

"Finding the Avatar is far more important than any individual's safety" Zuko said, getting in Lieutenant Jee's face before turning away and storming inside.

"He doesn't mean that, he's just all worked up for some reason" Iroh said solemnly. 

"Well, what was it you needed us to do General Iroh?" I asked, quickly changing the subject before they could start questioning exactly why Zuko was so worked up.

"There is a nasty storm coming" he explained. "We need to make sure that all of our supplies are secured, for everyone's safety."

"Yes sir" Lieutenant Jee said, ushering me back down the stairs below deck.

I followed obediently as Jee gathered as many crewmen as possible, instructing them on what needed to be done. We slowly went through the entire ship making sure everything was secured before moving up to the rear deck to tie down a couple of crates. Once we had finished we walked back to the main deck so Jee could let Iroh know we had finished. 

I walked over to the side of the deck and looked out at the sky ahead of us. Ominous looking clouds had rolled in pretty quickly and the smell of rain was heavy in the air. 

"Looks like your uncle was right about the storm after all" Jee suddenly said in a snarky tone. I turned my head and noticed Zuko had come back out on deck.

"Lucky guess" Iroh said sheepishly.

"Lieutenant, you'd better learn some respect, or I will teach it to you" Zuko said with a glare.

"What do you know about respect? The way you talk to everyone around here, from your hard working crew to your esteemed uncle, shows you know nothing about respect" Jee said angrily. "You don't care about anyone but yourself! Then again, what should I expect from a spoiled prince?"

Ouch, that was a low blow.

"Easy now" Iroh warned as Jee and Zuko lunged at each other threateningly.

"Enough!" Iroh said pushing the two apart. "We are all a bit tired from being at sea so long. I'm sure after a bowl of noodles everyone will feel much better."

Jee grumbled something under his breath and stormed below deck. The other crewmen that were helping us followed him down and I decided to go too. The last thing I wanted was to be on deck with a pissed off Zuko, especially since something was telling me I was the cause of his foul mood today.

We had all gone down to the engine room to escape the dangerous storm outside. Jee and the older men sat around a large barrel with a fire inside, drinking while ranting about Zuko while Kazuki and I sat off to the side.

"I'm sick of taking his orders and I'm tired of chasing his Avatar!" Jee growled, taking a swig of his drink. "I mean who does Zuko think he is?" 

"Do you really want to know?" Iroh's voice suddenly asked from the doorway. 

"General Iroh!" Jee said nervously. "We were just--"

"It's ok" Iroh interrupted. "May I join you?"

"Of course, Sir!"

"Try to understand, my nephew is a complicated young man. He has been through much" Iroh said solemnly.

I sat quietly as Iroh told the story I had heard so many times before. The other men listened intently as Iroh told them how the young prince was eager to attend a war meeting, and how he had spoken out against a cruel plan to sacrifice untrained men. It was surprising to me that I knew this story but Zuko's own men seemed to have no idea.

"After Zuko's outburst in the meeting, the Fire Lord became very angry with him. He said that Prince Zuko's challenge of the general was an act of complete disrespect, and there was only one way to resolve this." I noticed all of the men were looking at Iroh in various stages of disbelief. Even Kazuki looked shocked to hear the story. 

"Agni kai. A fire duel" Jee filled in the blank.

"That's right. Zuko looked upon the old general he had insulted and declared that he was not afraid. But Zuko misunderstood. When he turned to face his opponent, he was surprised to see it was not the General. Zuko had spoken out against a general's plan, but by doing so in the Fire Lord's war room, it was the Fire Lord whom he had disrespected. Zuko would have to duel his own father" Iroh said sadly.

"When Prince Zuko saw that it was his father who had come to duel him, he begged for mercy, but my brother is not a merciful man" he continued. "I looked away."

"I always thought that Prince Zuko was in a training accident" Jee said in horror.

"It was no accident. After the duel, the Fire Lord said that by refusing to fight, Zuko had shown shameful weakness. As punishment he was banished and sent to capture the Avatar. Only then could he return with his honor." 

"So that's why he's so obsessed. Capturing the Avatar is the only chance he has of things returning to normal" Jee mumbled.

"Things will never return to normal. But the important thing is, the Avatar gives Zuko hope" Iroh said.

"Toshi, you seem oddly unsurprised by this" Kazuki said and suddenly all eyes were on me. 

"I lived in a town right next to a major firenation port. Soldiers gossip worse than house wives, and it's only worse when they start drinking. I've heard this story more times than I've ever wanted to. I didn't know that Zuko had to catch the Avatar to be able to return home though, they only ever said he had been sent on a wild turkey duck chase" I explained. 

"I see. That's very interesting" Iroh said, stroking his beard thoughtfully.

"I'm actually more surprised that none of you have heard this, you've all been on the same ship for over three years now right?" I asked.

"The prince was banished immediately after the Agni Kai, we were shipped out so quickly, the news hadn't had a chance to spread yet." Kazuki sighed.

"Oh" I said quietly.

Suddenly a deafening noise echoed through the ship and the air was full of static. We all jumped to our feet and rushed out to the deck to see what had happened. 

"The tower was struck by lightning!" Jee yelled over the sound of the wind and rain. We all gaped up at the twisted metal that used to be a platform for the person on watch.

"Where were we hit?" Zuko yelled as he ran out on deck.

"I don't know!" Jee answered.

As they were talking another flash of lightning lit up the sky and I saw the shadow of someone dangling from the damaged tower.

"Zuko!" I yelled pointing up at the man who was holding on for dear life.

"The helmsman!" He yelled. Without missing a beat Zuko ran towards the tower and began climbing the ladder, Jee right on his heels. 

I gasped as the helmsman lost his grip and began falling. Zuko managed to grab his hand at the last second and Jee helped the man onto the ladder. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief once the three of them were safely back on deck.

Suddenly a familiar giant bison flew over the ship and went further into the storm.

"The Avatar!" Zuko said in surprise.

"What do you want to do, Sir?" Lieutenant Jee asked cautiously.

"Let him go. We need to get this ship to safety" Zuko commanded.

"Then we must head directly into the eye of the storm" Iroh said, sending his nephew a proud smile.

The helmsman and a few other crewmen went back up to the bridge to navigate through the storm. I went back inside, afraid of being knocked overboard by a huge wave. The last thing I needed to top off this awful day is drowning to death. 

I sat on my bed waiting out the rough storm, unable to fall asleep with all the thoughts buzzing around in my head. I desperately wanted to talk to Zuko, to tell him the truth and apologize for everything. 

Once things had settled down and the ship was silent I pulled my door open, cringing at the loud creaking noise it always made, and crept out into the hallway. I paused once I reached Zuko's door and took a deep breath before knocking lightly.

I squeezed my hands together nervously when I heard footsteps coming towards the door. The lock clicked and Zuko pulled the door open, pausing when he saw it was me.

"Uh, Hi" I said nervously.

"What do you want?" He asked coldly.

"I-I just wanted to talk to you."

"Well I don't want to talk to you." He said, slamming the door in my face.

I had to admit, even though I was expecting it, it still stung.

"I'm sorry Zuko" I mumbled, then turned around and went back to my room.

•••

Things are happening! And even more things will continue to happen. I'm so excited. 

I hope you guys are enjoying the story! I love reading your comments!   :D


	12. 12

Three days had passed since the storm and things on the ship had gotten pretty crazy. Half of the crew had come down with horrible colds from being out in the storm and the other half were working double shifts to keep things running smoothly. I still hadn't had a chance to talk to Zuko either. The day after the storm he had suddenly started disappearing for hours at a time, and now with half the crew out of commission, I had been so busy trying to keep up on chores that I had no time to even think about talking to him.

I woke up at sunrise and immediately went to the kitchen to help Ryota prepare breakfast and tea for everyone. Ryota loaded up a few trays with bowls of soup and pots of tea for the sick men. I took the first tray and made my rounds, delivering the food and tea to the sick men before carrying the empty tray to the kitchen. I made two more trips through the ship, delivering the rest of the food to the sick crew, then bringing a tray of food to the deck for Zuko and Iroh. 

"Good morning Toshi!" Iroh said cheerfully as I carried the tray over to his small table.

"Good morning" I said. I set the two bowls on the table and poured a couple of cups of tea for them.

"No time to chat today?" He asked curiously as I quickly stood to leave.

"Sorry sir, we're down two more men today, I've got a ship load of work to do." 

"I see. Well don't let me hold you up" he said with a kind smile. 

I nodded politely and turned around, ignoring the way Zuko was watching me from across the deck. He had made it perfectly clear the other day that he didn't want to talk to me, then the disappearing act started, so I decided it was probably better if I just keep my distance for a while. I had enough on my plate right now anyway.

I spent the next few hours tending to the rhinos then doing all of the laundry. It was lunch time by the time I had finished, so I went back to the kitchen to do more rounds of food delivery. 

It took me a while to find Zuko and Iroh, who had moved to the bridge of the ship. Iroh was playing pai sho with a few men who were just starting to feel better while Zuko was talking to Jee about the Avatar.

"Lunch time" I announced as I carried the heavy food tray through the door. 

"Excellent" Iroh said rubbing his belly. 

I set up the tray next to Iroh's game board, pausing when a dark shadow fell over the room.

"What do they want?" Zuko sighed as a huge warship pulled up against our much smaller ship.

"Perhaps a sporting game of Pai Sho!" Iroh said optimistically.

A few minutes later three men in red military uniforms came walking into the room, one holding a scroll.

"The hunt for the Avatar has been given prime importance. All information regarding the Avatar must be reported directly to Admiral Zhao" the oldest man said holding the scroll open to show a wanted poster with Aang's picture on it.

"Zhao has been promoted? Well, good for him!" Iroh said with a cheerful smile.

"I've got nothing to report to Zhao. Now get off my ship and let us pass" Zuko commanded. 

"Admiral Zhao is not allowing ships in or out of this area."

"Off my ship!" Zuko yelled angrily.

The three men left without another word and a few minutes later the larger ship was sailing away from ours.

"Excellent! I take the pot" Iroh said suddenly. "But, you're all improving. I'm certain you will win if we play again."

I chuckled and stood up to leave but paused when Jee placed a hand on my shoulder.

"I need you to finish taking inventory and moving those damaged crates from the rear deck before the supplies get ruined" he said.

"Ok, no problem" I nodded.

I left the control room and descended the stairs to the rear deck. There were several crates that had ended up damaged in the storm and I had been working on moving them below deck since yesterday. I found my inventory sheet and pulled open a crate carefully marking down what was inside before moving on to the next one. Some of it was food that had been bought recently, but most were parts and tools for different areas in the ship. After about an hour all the supplies we're inventoried and all that was left was to just move them to their respective areas.

I moved the food first, slowly carrying one crate at a time down to the storage near the kitchen. When that was done I took the tools down to the engine room. When it came to the spare parts I was kind of at a loss. They weren't labeled so I didn't know what they were for or where to put them. The crates were also pretty heavy and I wasn't sure how far I would be able to carry them, so I decided to store them below the rear deck where the river boat used to be.

I slowly moved the heavy crates across the deck near the stairs, then grabbed the first one and carefully descended the stairs. I paused when I reached the bottom, surprised to find a riverboat sitting in the middle of the room. I thought our river boat had been destroyed going over a waterfall. I guess Zuko got a new one or something. Luckily there was still enough room in the corner of the room for me to stack the crates. I set the first one down and moved on to the next one. 

I had only gotten through half of the crates when I had to stop for a break. I was exhausted. I my arms felt like noodles and my whole body was sore. Working non stop for three days was really wearing me down. 

I walked over to the river boat and laid down on the deck, stretching out my sore muscles then letting them relax. My mind went over all the things I still needed to do today. 

I heard footsteps echoing down the hallway and quickly sat up as the door swung open. Zuko stood in the doorway, wearing a shocked expression. 

"Umm, hi?" I said nervously as I stood up.

"Did my uncle send you" he asked suspiciously.

"No"

"Well then why are you here?" 

"I was moving supply crates" I said glancing at the stack of crates in the corner of the room.

"Oh"

We stood in awkward silence for a minute, neither of us really knowing what to say. I noticed his solid black clothes and the dual swords strapped to his back.

"Are you going somewhere?" I asked curiously. 

"That's none of your business" he said defensively.

I rolled my eyes and sighed. Clearly Zuko wasn't gonna talk about it, so I decided to just bite the blade and get it over with. 

"Zuko, I've been waiting to talk to-"

"Stop" he interrupted. 

"But I need to tell you som-"

"Don't" he interrupted again. "Look, I don't know what this is, but I can't deal with it right now. I need to focus on capturing the Avatar before Zhao does."

"Okay" I sighed. Of course, Zuko's priority was the Avatar. How could I forget that? I shouldn't be here complicating things. That was never my plan. I was supposed to be off this ship weeks ago. Why didn't I just go through with it when I had the chance? 

"Can I at least apologize to you?" I asked.

"You already did." He mumbled.

"I did?" 

"The other night, when you came to my room." He clarified.

"Oh. I--I didn't know you heard that..."

"Yeah."

We fell back into awkward silence. I hated this. I hate that it's so hard to even talk to him now, but it was my own fault. That's what I get for acting without thinking.

"I need to go" he suddenly said, stepping closer to the river boat. 

"Oh, yeah." I said walking over to the control panel that controlled the door and wench to lower the boat into the water. 

"You don't have to help me"

"I know" I said as I flipped the switch to lower the door.

Zuko boarded the boat and a flash of blue caught my eye. He was holding a crazy looking blue mask that looked like some kind of demon. What the heck was he up to?

"Toshi" he said and I glanced up at him curiously "If my uncle asks-"

"Your secret is safe with me" I said as I pressed the button to activate the wench and lower the boat into the water. 

I watched as he sailed away, praying to the spirits that he wouldn't get himself killed doing whatever it is he was doing. Once he was out of sight I got back to work, hauling the last of the heavy crates down the stairs and stacking them neatly in the corner. 

I went back to my room and flopped down on the bed. Almost immediately there was a heavy knock on my door. I groaned as I drug myself back out of bed and opened the door. Kazuki stood just outside my door in the dimly lit hallway. 

"Hey Kazuki, how are you feeling?" 

"Better than yesterday" he chuckled, his voice still a little raspy from coughing.

"Is everything okay?" I asked cautiously.

"Yep, General Iroh sent me to invite you to music night." He grinned.

"Sure. Sounds like fun" I said as I stepped into the hallway and let Kazuki lead the way to the deck. 

"He wanted me to invite Prince Zuko too, but I couldn't find him anywhere. You haven't seen him have you?" 

"Nope" I lied.

"Oh well, I wasn't really in the mood to be yelled at anyway" he shrugged. 

I chuckled at his comment, I couldn't imagine Zuko actually participating in something as freewheeling as music night.

Iroh greeted us with a cheerful smile as we walked out onto the deck. Several of the men had gathered around in a circle holding instruments. Kazuki and I sat down between a few of the guys and listened as the music started. Lieutenant Jee sang a surprisingly beautiful song and Iroh sang several songs as well. A few of the men even danced with each other, laughing loudly when one would step on the other's toes. The fun carried on well into the night, and I was beyond exhausted by the time I went to bed.

By the time I got up the next day Zuko was back, no worse for wear, though he looked completely exhausted.

'Where have you been, Prince Zuko?" Iroh asked curiously as I poured him a cup of tea. "You missed music night! Lieutenant Jee sang a stirring love song." 

"I'm going to bed" Zuko said as he walked across the deck looking quite grumpy. "No disturbances."

Zuko slept for the rest of the day, and the next day when I served him breakfast he seemed to be completely back to normal. He even acted like the whole kiss thing never happened. Things were still a little awkward between us, and I hated myself for not just telling him the truth, but he said he couldn't deal with it right now. I didn't want to make things worse so I decided to just respect his decision on the matter and keep my mouth shut for now. 

As the days passed things got easier. The tense atmosphere between us had mostly dissolved and we could at least carry on a civil conversation again. I was thankful for that. 

"Good morning Toshi" Iroh said with his typical as I delivered his usual morning tea. 

"Good morning" I noticed Zuko was sitting at the table pouting like a little kid. "Avatar troubles?"

"I don't know how we keep losing his trail!" Zuko groaned.

"Here Prince Zuko, take a moment to quiet your mind" Iroh said as he poured a cup of tea.

"Fine" He seemed to relax a little as Iroh handed him the cup.

"See, Prince Zuko, a moment of quiet is good for your mental well being." Iroh said.

Just as Zuko went to drink his tea the ship jerked harshly, causing him to spill his tea all over himself. He growled angrily as he jumped to his feet and stormed up to the deck. Iroh and I followed closely behind, curious  what was happening to rock the ship  like that.

"Get back! We're after a stowaway." I heard a woman yell as I stepped out on deck. 

There was a woman dressed in a tight fitting black dress, riding a huge mole looking creature that had ripped a hole clean through the deck of our ship.

"There are no stowaways on my ship" Zuko said angrily.

The mole monster suddenly sniffed the air and growled viciously at us. A shiver of fear went down my spine as it stepped forward.

"Well, well, well, I guess we found you after all" she said with a smirk. 

She cracked her whip and suddenly the best lashed it's long tongue out, hitting me on the arm. I instantly fell to the deck in a heap, eyes wide in fear as the woman jumped down from the beast's saddle and approached me.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing!?" Zuko yelled, but she ignored him and bent down to look me in the eye.

"I've been looking everywhere for you, little girl" she said in satisfaction.


	13. 13

I'm so glad y'all liked how I outed Toki. I really wanted to do it in a way that no one would really expect rather than the typical 'he walks in on her undressing' kind of thing.

•••

"I've been looking everywhere for you, little girl" she said in satisfaction.

"Huh!?" Zuko and Iroh both looked at the woman with wide eyes.

"Hate to break it to you boys" she laughed when she saw how confused they looked. "Seems like she really pulled the wool over your eyes."

"Wait! No!" I squeaked as she picked me up over her shoulder like it was nothing. "Zuko, I'm so sorry. I tried to tell you but-"

"Wait a minute, where are you going?" Zuko interrupted as she carried me towards the giant mole creature.

"I was hired by a man named Goro to find your little friend here. I'm going to bring her back where she belongs and collect my reward" she explained as she tossed me onto the back of the saddle.

"No! Please!" I begged as I struggled against my paralyzed muscles. It was no use, my body refused to respond.

"Fight it all you want, the toxins wont wear off for about an hour" she said with a smirk. 

"Zuko, please, don't let her take me back there!" I pleaded desperately, praying that he would overlook my lies long enough to help me.

"How did you find her on my ship?" Zuko asked. I felt my heart sinking as he and Iroh just stood there making no move to stop her. They were going to let her take me. 

"My shirshu can smell a rat a continent away" she said proudly. "I gotta give you credit little girl, when you run away, you really commit." She said with one last glance at all of the speechless men on deck. Then she effortlessly jumped back onto the saddle and cracked her whip.

"No! You can't take me back! I won't go back to that place!" I screamed as panic set in. The beast growled as it jumped off of the ship and ran across the docks into town.

Zuko:

Toshi is a girl? My mind was reeling as I watched the beast run down the docks. This whole time I've been having these confusing thoughts and feelings about him, and he was a she all along! Why was she dressed like a boy? And more importantly, why didn't she tell me the truth after she kissed me? 

"Uncle, did you know about this?"

"No, I didn't." He was gravely serious.

"It certainly explains a lot though" Jee said as he stood next to Uncle.

"Though it does seem to raise far more questions than answers" Uncle said, stroking his beard like he always did when he was thinking about something.

"I wonder what she was running away from" Jee mumbled.

I felt my cheeks get warm as I remembered our conversation in the kitchen. I had no way of knowing if any of it was true, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to know. 'Toshi' has been nothing but a huge distraction for me since the moment he-- I mean she, stepped foot on my ship. It left a bad taste in my mouth to even think about it, but I couldn't afford to have her around anymore. Things would undoubtedly be easier without her here mucking things up all the time.

But what if it was true, could I really live with myself if I let that woman drag her back to suck a horrible life? 

I wanted answers to all of my questions, but what I needed was the Avatar. I needed to focus on finding him before Zhao. He had already come so close to ruining everything for me once and I couldn't let that happen again. I needed to pick back up on the Avatar's trail as soon as possible, and now I had the perfect opportunity to do it.

"Come on Uncle." I said as I walked across the deck.

Toki:

I struggled against the thick cuffs that held my wrists to a wooden post. The woman, who I had learned was a bounty hunter named June, had decided to stop for the night so she could rest up for our long journey back to return me. She brought her shirshu, Nyla, to a small stable and chained me to a nearby post so it could guard me in case I "tried any funny business". 

The toxins from the Nyla's tongue had worn off about thirty minutes after she cuffed me, so I was able to move again. Thought every time I did, Nyla would start to growl at me. I had spent the last few hours desperately trying to slip the cuffs off without alerting the shirshu but it was no use. They were too tight and all I had managed to do was bruise my wrists and hands. I leaned against the pole and released a heavy sigh as I tried to come up with a different plan. I needed to get out of here. I couldn't go back to that life. I would rather die.

I froze in fear when I heard footsteps echoing through the dark stable.

"Get up" June ordered. 

I stood up and waited nervously as she put the saddle back on Nyla's back.

"I thought we were staying here for the night" I said, feeling the panic rise within me again. I was hoping to have  a few more hours to try and figure out an escape plan.

"Change of plans" she said as she uncuffed one of my hands to remove me from the pole then re-cuffed me. She kept a firm grip on my arm as she lead Nyla and I out of the stable. My heart was racing as she lead us toward the tavern. I didn't know who or what was waiting for us over there and a dozen different scenarios we're running through my mind. None of them were good.

My heart fluttered in anticipation when I saw that it was Zuko and Iroh who were waiting for us. Maybe he had decided to help me after all.

"Alright angry boy, what is it you want?" She asked. When I noticed the conflicted look on Iroh's face my hope began to waiver.

"I need you to find someone" Zuko said holding up a familiar blue necklace. He wouldn't even look in my direction.

"What happened? Your girlfriend run off on you?" June smirked.

"It's not the girl I'm after, it's the bald monk she's traveling with" he explained. Of course, the Avatar. Once again I had forgotten about the only thing that was important to Zuko. 

"Whatever you say" she rolled her eyes.

"If you find them, I'll consider the damage to my ship paid for" he said.

With that statement, whatever tiny sliver of hope I had left was quickly snuffed out. It was stupid of me to think Zuko would come to help me. I was nothing but an irrelevant peasant girl who had worked on his ship and lied to him. And I was the idiot who had developed a ridiculous crush. We weren't friends. We weren't anything.

I immediately pushed my feelings down, burying them away to be dealt with later. I had more important things to worry about right now.

"Forget it" June scoffed.

"Plus we'll pay your weight in gold" Iroh said suddenly.

"Make it your weight and we got a deal" she countered.

"You got it" Iroh grinned widely.

She took the necklace from Zuko and held it in out for Nyla to sniff. It growled once it got the scent and she handed the necklace back to Zuko.

"Get on" she said as she lifted me up onto the saddle and jumped up behind me. 

Once Zuko and Iroh had climbed onto the saddle behind her, she cracked her whip and the shirshu took off running.

We rode through the night, covering a surprising distance in the short amount of time. That didn't bode well for me. I needed to figure a way out of this soon or I would end up trapped back at that tavern, likely under constant supervision and no hope of ever escaping again.

Some time after the sun had come up we came to a stop at the top of a mountain. There was a large green house with a small old woman standing out front with a white cat.

"Out for a bit of fresh air, are we?" She asked curiously. 

"We're looking for someone." Zuko said.

"I hope it's not Miyuki. Miyuki, did you get in trouble with the Fire Nation again?" The cat looked at the woman and meowed.

"The Avatar's been through here. Let's keep moving." June cracked her whip and the shirshu took off once again.

A short time later we stopped again, this time in a small village near a volcano. Nyla seemed to hover around one building in particular, sniffing all around it.

"Why are we stopping?" Zuko asked impatiently.

"Because the girl must of spent a lot of time here" June explained.

"We have no time for this!" Zuko snapped, jumping down from the saddle and shoving the necklace in the shirshu's face. It growled and whipped it's tongue at Zuko, who narrowly dodged getting paralyzed.

"Hey, watch it!" He yelled.

"Oh look, he likes you" June said in a patronizing tone.

Zuko growled and climbed back on the saddle but right as we were about to leave an older woman came out of the building in front of us.

"Care to hear your fortune, handsome?" She asked, eying Iroh. 

I glanced behind me and realized that everyone's attention was on Iroh and the woman. I decided to take my chance, though I knew it likely wouldn't work, I still needed to try. 

I took a deep breath and jerked my head backwards, slamming it into June's cheek, causing her to smack her head against Zuko's. There was a chorus of yells and cursing as I threw myself off of the saddle and hit the ground hard. I scrambled to my feet, thankful that my hands were cuffed in front of me for once, and sprinted away from them as fast as my feet could carry me.

"Hey! Get back here!" June yelled after me. 

I heard the whip crack loudly and I pushed myself to go faster. I could hear the shirshu's feet hitting the ground behind me, steadily getting closer, and suddenly there was a sharp stinging on the back of my neck. My muscles immediately seized up and I fell to the ground and rolled a couple of times.

June was glaring daggers at me as she jumped down from the saddle and walked over to me. Her cheek was red and already starting to bruise. I refused to even look at Zuko to see what the damage was to his face.

"You little brat! I knew you were desperate, but I didn't think you were stupid" she said as she lifted me up and threw me back on behind Iroh. 

She jumped back into the saddle and we were off again. I could feel eyes on me as we rode along, but I kept my head down, scowling at the ground in frustration. 

"We're getting close" June said when she noticed the shirshu getting more and more agitated. 

She was right. About five minutes later we had caught up to the water tribe siblings, Sokka and Katara, and Nyla had them cornered.

"So this is your girlfriend. No wonder she left. She's way too pretty for you" June smirked. Zuko ignored her, sliding down from the saddle and rushing closer to them angrily.

"Where is he? Where's the Avatar?"

"We split up! He's long gone" Sokka said.

"How stupid do you think I am?" Zuko snapped.

"Pretty stupid" Sokka shrugged then shouted "Run!"

The two ran, but only made it a few feet before Nyla whipped them with it's tongue and left them laying helplessly on the ground. 

"What are we supposed to do now?" Zuko groaned as the shirshu sniffed around the siblings.

"It's seeking a different scent perhaps something that the Avatar held" June explained as Nyla took interest in a scroll that fell out of Sokka's backpack.

"Got it" she said, jumping down from the saddle. She and Zuko plopped the siblings down next to me on the back of the saddle, then we we're off once again.

"Hey, I know you." Katara said, looking over at me curiously. 

"You're Zuko's pet!" Sokka announced loudly, causing Zuko's head to snap around quickly as Iroh snorted with laughter. 

"Shut your mouth, you water tribe filth!" He yelled.

"I'm not his pet" I snapped, ignoring the amber glare burning through the side of my head.

"I don't get it, why are you back here with us" Katara asked.

"Long story" I huffed. 

Suddenly the shirshu jumped over a large wall and we were in a courtyard. It spun around in circles, sniffing the ground excitedly.

"What's it doing? It's just going around in a circle!" Zuko snapped angrily.

"Aang!" Katara screamed in my ear as the Avatar swooped down on his glider.

Nyla jumped up on it's hind legs as it chased Aang, throwing all of us off of it's back in the process. 

I groaned in pain, as someone's elbow dug painfully into my ribs. Loud growling filled the courtyard as Nyla faced off against the Avatar's giant bison. Flashes of bright fire and yelling came from the root tops as Zuko fought against Aang. 

I flinched when someone suddenly grabbed me, and I relaxed when I realized it was a nun. She and a few others pulled me, Sokka and Katara out of the way of the wild fights going on in the middle of the courtyard, then waved a vile of strong smelling perfume under our noses. 

I sighed in relief when my muscles immediately loosened up and I was able to move again. Unfortunately my hands were still cuffed, so I still didn't have full range of motion.

"That thing sees with its nose. Let's give him something to look at" I heard Sokka say, but I was already looking for another opening to run. If there was ever an opportunity for escape, now was the perfect time. 

I snuck along the wall, watching where June and Nyla were at all times. I gasped when a large hand suddenly grabbed my shoulder and I spun around quickly. A sigh of relief escaped when I realized it was only Iroh. 

"Iroh, I-" I paused when he held up a hand to stop me. 

"I am sure you have your reasons for doing what you did" He said with a pleasant smile. "And I am sure my nephew has his reasons for his actions as well." 

"I guess so" I sighed.

"Might I at least ask for your name before you go?" He asked curiously. 

"It's Toki" I said with a smile.

"It's lovely to meet you Toki" Iroh said, grabbing my hand and slipping me a small piece of metal. I glanced down curiously at the key in my hand, then looked back up at Iroh. He smiled mischievously then turned his head and looked away, whistling innocently. 

"Wiley old man" I chuckled as I quickly unlocked the handcuffs and sprinted out the front gate of the courtyard.

I stumbled clumsily down the rocky hill until I hit level ground, then sprinted into the forest. I ran as fast as I could, away from June and Nyla, away from Iroh and Zuko, away from everything. 

There was nothing left for me back there. I was alone with no place to go and nothing ahead of me but open land and a fresh start.

 

•••

Please don't be mad, I promise this is not the last of our favorite moody prince! :)


	14. 14

I sighed as I stared up into the moonless sky. I had been wandering through the forest for nearly a week now and still hadn't found my way out. My days were spent constantly checking over my shoulder for any signs of June or Nyla and searching for food or a town, and my nights were spent sleeplessly staring off into space, replaying the last couple of months in my head and questioning every decision I had made. 

I had spent more time than I would care to admit crying over a certain stupid hotheaded prince and the fact that he was perfectly okay with that woman taking me back to my old life. I know I lied to him and probably lost any kind of respect in his eyes, but what kind of person just sits there and let's someone get taken away to a life of prostitution and servitude? I knew Zuko could be a jerk, but I never thought he would just turn a blind eye to something like that. I was pissed off, and there was nothing I wanted more than to punch him square in the face, but it didn't matter anymore. I would never see him again. He would likely capture Aang and drag him back to the Firenation, reclaim his throne, and lead his stupid armies in the complete destruction of what's left of the world. Just like he always wanted.

"Stupid Zuko!" I growled in frustration, wiping the moisture away from my eyes. "Why, of all the stupid hotheaded jerks in the whole world, why did I have like him" I sighed.

I had asked myself that question several times over the last week, each time sounding more and more bitter. I hated it. I hated how I thought about him constantly, and how I felt when I thought about him. Most of all I hated how, despite his callous indifference when I needed him most, I couldn't hate him. And I still felt so guilty for everything I put him through.

I closed my eyes tightly and pushed my thoughts away, gladly drifting off to some much needed sleep. 

I woke up late in the day and immediately continued on, too afraid to stay in one place for too long. It was a mystery to me why June hadn't come after me yet, but that didn't mean she still wouldn't. 

I pushed my way through some thick brush and smiled widely when I saw a small town just ahead. I picked up my pace, excited by the first signs of civilization I had seen all week.

It was a small town, the main Street lined with different shops and vendors, all glaring hatefully as I walked by. I looked around with raised eyebrows, wondering why they were all looking at me like that.

"What do we have here?" A large man said with a sneer. "A little Firenation soldier out all alone?"

"What?" I looked down at my clothes and nearly smacked myself. I was still wearing Zuko's old clothes. That's why these people were glaring at me like that, everyone hates the firenation. And now I have a problem, because they think I am firenation. 

"I was just passing through" I said nervously.

"I don't think so" he said with a wicked grin. 

A shiver of fear went through me as he stepped forward menacingly. He suddenly lifted his arms pulling two large rocks from the ground. The rocks came flying in my direction faster than I had expected and I was barely able to dodge them in time. He then lifted his arms and the ground in front of me started to tremble. I threw myself backwards as a huge chunk stone shot up from the ground where I had just been standing. I was suddenly very grateful for all that time I spent dodging a certain moody prince's fire blasts. 

The earthbender growled angrily and sent another stone sailing in my direction. I jumped to the side and heard a loud crash as the stone smashed into a fruit stand behind me.

"Hey!" An old woman yelled waving her fist at the earthbender. "Watch it you fool! One little firenation brat isn't worth destroying our town over!" 

"Why don't you mind your own business you old hag!" He yelled back. 

"Who're you calling an old hag?" She yelled, stomping over to the earthbender and taking him by the ear. "You youngins need to learn respect for your elders!"

I stood there gawking awkwardly as she drug him past me towards her destroyed fruit stand and demanded that he fix it. 

"That was weird" I mumbled, quickly turning and rushing away from them. 

I wasn't one to look a gift ostrich horse in the mouth, and I was going to get the heck out of here while I had the chance. On my way out of town I passed by a few small houses and I noticed one had a clothes line behind it with freshly washed clothes hanging from it. Jackpot! 

I ducked down and snuck around the house, peeking around the corner to make sure no one would see me. Luckily the coast was clear, so I jogged over and quickly grabbed a few things that looked like they might fit me, snatched a pair of boots from near the back door, then ran away as fast as I could. 

Once I was far enough away from the town I ducked behind a few trees and looked at the clothes. Basic green earth kingdom style. Perfect. I checked my surroundings, then quickly removed Zuko's clothes and pulled on my new earth kingdom clothes. 

It was just a simple green dress over a light green shirt and pants, but it strangely made me feel like myself again. I had gladly gotten rid of the uncomfortable chest binding my first night alone, and with my hair that had grown out a bit over the last couple of months I actually felt like a girl again.

I held Zuko's clothes in my arms, trying to decide if I should keep them or not, when that same bitter feeling crept up on me again. Why would I want to keep anything that belonged to that stupid jerk? I huffed and carelessly threw the clothes to the ground. 

"Good riddance" I mumbled and turned around to leave, but then hesitated for some reason. I glanced back at the discarded clothes lying on the ground, a strange mix of guilt and longing coming over me.

"Uugh, why is this so difficult?" I groaned in frustration, scowling at the pile of red cloth.

They were just clothes for crying out loud! But they were his clothes. As angry as I was at him, as much as I really wished I didn't, I still had feelings for him. And I wasn't the kind of person who could just throw it away like it never happened. But the fact remained, I couldn't be caught carrying around firenation clothes or I would just end up in a similar situation as I was earlier today. And next time there wouldn't be a crazy old lady to come to my rescue.

I knelt down and grabbed the strip of red cloth that I had used as a belt, running my fingers over the silky fabric with a sigh. It would be enough to satisfy my stupid bleeding heart, but not enough to prove any real connection to the fire nation and get me into trouble. I  searched around for a sharp rock and cut off a piece the fabric. Then I wrapped the piece fabric around my wrist and knotted it so it wouldn't fall off. 

Satisfied with my compromise, I got back to my feet and continued on my journey without looking back.

Things got a little easier as the weeks passed. I wandered aimlessly from town to town, working odd jobs here and there for food or money. I didn't worry about June or Nyla anymore, if they wanted to find me they would have done so a long time ago. I still thought about Zuko and Iroh from time to time, but I always pushed the thoughts away before I had a chance to get upset again. I refused to be angry or sad about them anymore, it was just wasted energy, so I allowed numbness to take over. It was just easier that way.

I wasn't sure how far I had traveled, but I was getting very tired of moving from place to place so much. I needed to find a place to settle down and just live my life. I didn't want to just float around aimlessly making excuses for why this town wasn't right, or why it would be better if I just went a little bit further. They were all pretty much the same anyway.

The only places that I had known to be different were Omashu and Ba Sing Se, but there were rumors going around that Omashu had been taken under firenation control, and you needed to have papers to get through the strict border controls at Ba Sing Se. I had absolutely zero intentions of going to a city crawling with firenation soldiers, and being abandoned as a child, I obviously didn't have any documentation to be able to get into Ba Sing Se, so small dirt farming towns were really my only options.

Unfortunately the earth kingdom soldiers in these small towns were usually just as bad as firenation soldiers, if not worse. That was definitely the case in the town I had recently arrived in. It was small and the people were poor, save for the soldiers who kept their comfortable lifestyle through some pretty unsavory practices.

I had checked almost every shop around and no one was in need of extra help, so it seemed I was out of luck on having anything for dinner tonight. I sighed and sat on the ground against a building. I closed my eyes for only a moment when a large shadow fell over me.

"Can I help you?" I sighed and opened my eyes. An angry looking earthbender with long brown hair and two large hammers strapped to his belt was hovering over me.

"There's no loitering in the streets, girl. Move along." He ordered.

"I was just resting for a minute" I said as I got to my feet.

"I don't care what you're doing. This town doesn't need any more freeloaders hanging around!" He snapped.

"Leave her alone Gow!" A male voice called out. A guy maybe a year or two older than me was glaring at the soldier. There was a younger boy standing next to him with his arms crossed, trying to look intimidating despite the fact that he couldn't have been any older than eight or nine years old.

"You should mind your own business, pig farmer! Unless you're finally ready to join the army and fight for your country?" He sneered.

"He'll never join you!" The kid yelled angrily.

"We'll see about that!" The soldier laughed. "It's only a matter of time for both of you."

"Hey" I said, catching the soldier's attention "you wanted me up, I'm up. Why don't we all just move along now?" I said, attempting to diffuse the building tension in the air.

"Fine" he frowned. "You better watch your back pig farmer!" He snapped before finally walking away.

"Sorry about him" the older boy said as they stepped closer to me.

"That guy is a real jerk!" The kid added. 

"Yeah, but he's not the worst I've run into" I shrugged.

"I'm Sensu" the older boy said with a charming smile "and this is my little brother Lee" he added, ruffling the boy's hair playfully.

"Hey, quit it" the boy laughed, swatting his brother's hand away.

"I'm Toki. Thanks for trying to help with that guy"

"I think we probably just made it worse to be honest" Sensu said sheepishly.

"Yeah, probably" I shrugged, pretending not to notice the slightly disappointed look on his face. I guess he had expected me to swoon like some damsel in distress or something.

"Hey, do you have some place to stay tonight?" Lee asked enthusiastically.

"Uh, no, actually" I mumbled.

"Then you should come sleep with us!"

"Lee" Sensu hissed under his breath, his cheeks blushed slightly.

"What?" Lee asked innocently. "She needs a place to stay." 

"Yeah but that's not..." He started but paused and just groaned "nevermind."

"So, what do you say?" Lee asked expectantly.

"I don't want to be a bother" I said, unsure if it was really a good idea to follow two strange boys back to their house. 

"It's no trouble at all" Sensu said, flashing a bright smile "My mom is a great cook and you look like you could use a good hot meal and a place to rest."

I was going to say no, but just the thought of food had my stomach growling loudly. I blushed and held a hand to my empty stomach, silently begging it to shut up.

"I'll take that as a yes" He said with a laugh.

"Come on, let's go eat!" Lee said, cheerfully leading the way.

Sensu and I followed him, half listening as he rambled on about anything and everything that came to his mind. A few minutes later I noticed we were approaching a pig farm. There were several fenced in areas filled with different colored pigs that snorted and squealed as we walked by. When we got closer to the house a man and a woman came to meet us outside.

"Who is this?" The woman asked curiously.

"Her name is Toki! We invited her to stay here tonight." Lee announced proudly.

"Is that right?" The man asked, glancing at Sensu curiously.

"Gow was giving her a hard time, so we decided to help" he shrugged nonchalantly. "It was no big deal."

"No big deal, huh?" The man chuckled then turned to me. "Well, any friend of my boys is welcome here. My name is Gansu and this is my wife Sela."

"It's nice to meet you Toki" Sela said with a sweet smile. 

"It's nice to meet you too" I said bowing politely. 

"Well let's not keep the poor girl waiting, I bet she is starving" Gansu said leading the way inside.

•••

Sorry for the delay, my baby daughter is sick again. Updates will be less frequent over the next couple of weeks while we have testing done to find out what is wrong. 

Thank you for your awesome comments/reviews, I'm glad y'all are enjoying it :)

P.S. I drew Toki 

https://mundanemomma.deviantart.com/art/Toki-696693658


	15. 15

Sela and Gansu were the nicest people I had encountered in a long time. They allowed me into their home, fed me, gave me a place to sleep, and when they found out I had nowhere else to go they took me in as one of their own without any question. I finally had a home and a family, the one thing I had always wanted.

Sensu seemed pretty happy that I had decided to stay and had appointed himself my official teacher to "the complexities of farm life". I didn't think it would be very hard to learn since I had spent so much time caring for the Komodo Rhinos, but of course I couldn't tell them that, so I decided to just play along. 

Every day we would get up at the crack of dawn and start the daily routine of collecting eggs from the chickens before cleaning their mess from the chicken coop. Then Lee would feed the chickens while we moved on to the pigs. Sensu would shovel out the pig pens while I fed them their mix of food scraps and who knows what else that Gansu would throw in the buckets. 

Once all that was done we would have lunch, then Sensu and Lee would load up the cart with whatever we could sell or trade and go into town. While they were gone Gansu would continue with whatever work still needed to be done and I would cook dinner so Sela could finish laundry or just take a break. And after dinner Sensu Lee and I would go for a walk through the sunflower fields together and look at the stars.

That was our routine, almost every single day, until the day Sensu came home and told us he had decided to join the army. We were all shocked. We asked him several times what had made him change his mind, but never got a straight answer. He only said that it was time he stepped up and helped to protect the Earth Kingdom from the Firenation. We had tried talking him out of it, but he would just smile and say that everything would be okay. But we all knew better than that. He knew as well as anyone that there was a chance he would not make it out of this war alive. 

Once we realized there was no talking him out of it we decided to just accept his decision and try to make the best of his last night home. I made his favorite roast for dinner and we spent a few hours just sitting around the table talking and laughing. It was a bitter sweet time and I could tell his parents were trying really hard to keep their spirits up for the sake of their younger son.

The next morning I was out in the stables saddling his ostrich horse when he walked over to me with a strange determination in his eyes. 

"Good morning" he said, coming to a stop directly in front of me.

"Hey" I smiled, but froze when he gently grabbed my face and pressed his lips to mine. 

The kiss was hesitant, gentle, and sweet, and it felt all wrong. I hated myself for it, but my mind immediately jumped back to that stupid warship, to Zuko. When Zuko had kissed me, however brief it may have been, it was fiery and passionate. It made me weak at the knees and had me melting from the inside out. I didn't feel that with Sensu, I didn't feel anything, and I had a feeling he realized that too as he pulled back and sighed.

"I'm sorry" I said softly, feeling guilty for some reason. 

Why couldn't I have felt the same about him? He was such a sweet and amazing guy! But he was leaving today, so maybe it was for the best that I didn't feel that way.

"I kind of already knew you didn't feel the same, but I had to try" he shrugged. "There's someone else, isn't there?" 

"What makes you think that?"

He lightly tugged on the strip of red silk around my left wrist, giving me a sad but knowing look. 

"How did you know?" I sighed, running my fingers over the soft fabric. I should have gotten rid of it a long time ago, but I could never bring myself to do it. I obviously still hadn't dealt with my feelings over him. 

"You do that. All the time."

"Do what?" I asked confused.

"You stare at it like it's a lifeline. Like it's the only thing keeping you from drowning in an ocean of sadness" he said.

"Wow, when did you turn into a sagely old man" I laughed.

"I'm serious Toki, your mind is always somewhere else. It's like you're here, but you're not here, ya know?" 

That statement hit me hard. Harder than Sensu could have ever imagined. The way he described me sounded exactly like my mother. I shuddered at the thought. How could I have let that happen? I always swore that I would never be like her, but here I was, floating through life while my mind was somewhere far far away. 

I decided that day, as I stood with my new family watching Sensu ride away to fight in the war, that I was done dwelling on the past. I wouldn't let myself become my mother. I wouldn't neglect the important people in my life because I was too busy grieving a doomed one-sided crush. It wouldn't be easy, but it was necessary.

Life had gotten much busier for me after Sensu left. I had taken over all of his chores and I had started going with Lee into town in the afternoons. None of the shop owners seemed to respect me and always gave me trouble, complaining that they should be doing business with a man instead of "some girl". It was frustrating, but I always stood my ground and refused to let them push me around. 

I had also been making some pretty good progress on dealing with my emotional issues too. Even Sela and Gansu had noticed. They both told me that I seemed much less sad and distant than I used to be. It was a huge relief for me to hear that and know that it was possible for me to turn things around for myself.

As time passed I got used to my new routine. The chores didn't seem so hard anymore and I was pretty good at dealing with the crabby old men in town. The only thing that got harder was taking Lee into town with me. Over the couple of months since Sensu had left he had taken on quite a rebellious attitude and would always look for opportunities to antagonize Gow and his band of soldiers while I was busy. And it appeared that today's weapon of choice was a couple of eggs from the crate that I was supposed to sell today.

"What is this? Are you trying to short me?" The old man grumbled as he inspected the eggs. One would think he was buying rare diamonds with the way he checked them over for any imperfections.

"We must have lost some on the ride over, I don't know what could have happened" I lied, knowing exactly what happened to the missing eggs.

"Well, don't expect me to pay full price for your mistakes!" He snapped, tossing me a few copper pieces. 

I rolled my eyes as I collected the money. That guy was always such a jerk. Once the money was safely tucked away I decided it was time to track Lee down and make sure he wasn't getting himself killed or arrested or something.

I slowly lead the ostrich horse and cart through the streets, carefully checking each each alley and known hiding place without any luck. I turned the corner and finally found Lee talking to someone who's face was covered by a straw hat. 

"Thanks for not ratting me out" I overheard Lee say.

"Ratting you out for what?" I asked, taking the two by surprise.

"Toki! You missed it, this guy just stood up to the soldiers!" Lee said with a huge grin.

"Toki?" An all to familiar voice stopped me in my tracks.

My heart skipped a beat when I looked at the strangers face was met with piercing amber eyes, the left one framed by a dark scar. We both stared at each other in disbelief.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

So many emotions were coursing through me all at once, anger, guilt, shock, curiosity, even happiness. It was a lot all at once, but I forced my face to remain neutral, refusing to show him how much of an effect he had on me. I didn't know why he was here and I wasn't going to fall into any traps.

"I was just buying some bags of feed" he said awkwardly.

He looked genuinely surprised to see me, so I wasn't worried that I was being tracked down, but something was definitely off with him. He was all alone, wearing dirty brown clothes and his pony tail was gone, replaced by a full head of short black hair. He also looked drastically thinner than when I had last seen him. 

"Wait, you two know each other?" Lee asked with wide eyes.

"Something like that" I muttered sarcastically, earning myself a pointed look from Zuko. 

"Cool!" Lee said excitedly, grabbing the reigns of Zuko's Ostrich horse. "Let's take him back home and feed his ostrich horse." 

"I don't think-" Zuko started to decline but Lee was already walking away with his horse.

"Come on, I owe you!" He said as he continued on, leaving us behind. 

I glanced at Zuko who was staring at me warily. He seemed a little bit unsure around me, like I was a wild platypus bear and he was waiting for me to attack or something. If this had been a few months ago I probably would have. I couldn't lie, there was still some residual anger, but I could tell he really wasn't doing well on his own and he needed some help. He looked malnourished and exhausted. I didn't know what had happened to him since we had last seen each other, but it looked like he had been through hell.

"Well come on, let's go" I sighed, leading the ostrich horse and cart in the same direction Lee went. 

I couldn't, in good conscience, just leave him here to starve. I wasn't that kind of person. I just had to keep my distance while he was around, that's all. I would be civil and tolerate his presence for now, and once he was gone I would put it behind me and move on.

I kept my gaze forward as we walked along. I was highly aware of Zuko walking next to me and I could practically feel his eyes burning holes through the side of my head, but I refused to look in his direction. I was determined to keep my distance from him, but I had a feeling it wasn't going to be as easy as I was hoping.

When we finally approached the farm Lee was already standing out front talking to his parents.

"By the end, he practically had them running away." We heard the very end of what he was excitedly telling his parents.

"Does this guy have a name?" Sela asked, glancing over at us as we got closer.

"I'm, uh?" Zuko fumbled.

"Ping" I said quickly "his name is Ping." I had to admit I enjoyed the irritated look on Zuko's face more than I should have. I guess he wasn't a fan of the name I thought up for him.

"Well, anyone who can hold his own against those bully 'soldiers' is welcome here" Gansu said with a wide grin.

"Ugh" I rolled my eyes and grabbed the reigns for both ostrich horses. I pushed past them to put the cart away and take care of the animals, ignoring the confused looks I was getting. I wasn't in the mood to hear about how awesome everyone thought Zuko was today. 

Once I had the cart unhooked and put away I brought the animals to the stables, removing their reigns and giving them some food and water. I sat there, enjoying the peace and quiet for a little while, but of course it didn't last long. Gansu Zuko and Lee came walking over and climbed the ladder to the barn, Lee rambling on loudly as usual.

"You don't seem like you're from around here." Lee asked curiously.

"Uh-uh" Zuko mumbled.

"Where are you from then?"

"Far away"

"Oh. Where're you going?"

"Lee, give it a rest. Stop asking the man personal questions, got it?" Gansu scolded.

"Fine" he huffed. "I'll just ask Toki then!" He announced, turning in my direction expectantly.

"Nope" I said flatly, walking out of the stable, practically slamming the door behind me. Clearly this was going to be more difficult than I first thought.

"Is everything okay?" Sela asked as I walked into the house.

"Yeah" I sighed as I stepped into the kitchen where Sela had started cooking dinner.

I picked up a knife and started cutting up some meat to go into the pot. Stupid Zuko. Why did he have to show up here? Why now? There haven't been any Avatar sightings in this area, so what was he doing here? And where was Iroh? Why wasn't he with him? I sincerely hoped nothing bad had happened to the cheerful old man. He was undoubtedly one of the kindest firebenders I had ever met and the world would be a much sadder place without him.

"Um, Toki?" Sela snapped me out of my thoughts. "If you chop that meat any more we're going to be eating mush for dinner."

"Oh, sorry..." I mumbled, setting the knife aside.

"You seem distracted"

"I'm okay" I said with a smile. 

"If you say so" she sounded unconvinced, but let the matter drop. "I'm going to go finish the laundry" she said, handing me her large wooden spoon and leaving the room. 

That's one of the things I loved about Sela and Gansu, they never pushed me to tell them anything more than what I felt comfortable with. Even when I showed up here and told them I had nowhere else to go, they never pressed for answers or asked too many questions. It was definitely something I was thankful for.

A while later Gansu and Lee came walking into the house with Zuko trailing awkwardly behind them.

"That smells delicious!" Gansu said peeking into the pot.

"It's almost ready" I said shooing him away and placing the lid over the pot.

"You're cooking?" Zuko asked curiously, staring at me from the kitchen doorway.

Gansu and Lee looked over at him, then immediately shifted their gazes to me, probably wondering why he would ask something like that.

"Yeah, so?" I snapped, giving him a dirty look.

Father and son turned back toward Zuko, watching the two of us like spectators watching a sporting event. 

"I thought you hated cooking" he stated, seemingly unfazed by my attitude towards him.

All eyes shifted back to me. I was getting pretty irritated at this point, all I wanted was to keep my distance, but every time I turned around, there he was.

"Wow, way to remember the important things" I said harshly, gripping my spoon so hard my knuckles turned white and daring him to open his stupid uncharacteristically calm mouth again. 

Just what was his deal anyway? Since when was he mister calm, cool, and collected? 

"Maybe we should go wash up before we eat" Gansu suddenly said, ushering Lee and Zuko out of the kitchen and leaving me to my thoughts.

•••

I just had to toss a little Mulan in there lol


	16. 16

Okay, first of all I am so sorry that I've been gone for so long! Life has been absolutely crazy lately! My husband had back surgery and was basically helpless for a while so I had no free time to even look at this story. I promise it has not been abandoned or forgotten though! 

I worked really hard to get at least this one chapter done before Christmas for you guys to thank y'all for sticking with me and being so patient!bi will try to get a few more out by New year's but I can't promise anything. I'm sorry!

You guys are awesome! Thank you! Merry Christmas!

•••

Zuko POV:

I glanced over my shoulder at Toki as Gansu led us out of the kitchen. Her frustrated glare stayed trained on me until I turned the corner and walked back outside. 

She was obviously still angry. But if she was still so mad, why would she help me? Why would she bring me here to her new home if she hated me so much?

Meeting her again was definitely a shocker. I was so sure that I would never see her again. And she looked so different from before that I almost didn't recognize her until Lee said her name. Her hair had grown out a lot and she was wearing a plain green Earth Kingdom dress. She actually looked like a girl now, which was a far cry from when I had last seen her so many months ago.

"What's wrong with her?" Lee's voice snapped my out of my wandering thoughts.

"Don't worry about it Lee" Gansu said in a fatherly tone while eying me curiously. 

"But there's obviously something wrong. I've never seen Toki so mad at anyone before!" Lee looked at me, confusion written all over his face. "What happened?" 

"Lee!" Gansu's voice held a tone of warning.

"It's ok" I spoke up, knowing they were all probably wondering what was going on. "I know she's still mad at me, but I can't change the past. Maybe someday she will actually talk to me again, and I can explain my side of things."

"Did you guys have a fight or something?" Lee asked curiously.

"Yeah" I nodded.

"Alright you two, let's get washed up" Gansu said, ending the conversation and ushering us along once again. 

Toki POV:

We all sat around the dinner table eating quietly. After my outburst in the kitchen earlier, no one had really dared to strike up a conversation with me. I kept my gaze focused on my plate as I ate, ignoring Zuko's unyielding stare. He was really wearing my nerves thin and I hoped he would leave first thing in the morning.

The minute my plate was clear I quickly excused myself and made a hasty escape to the kitchen. I was angrily scrubbing my plate clean when Sela came into the kitchen and set her plate on the counter for me to wash next. 

"Toki, what's going on?" She asked gently.

"It's nothing" I sighed, pausing my emotional venting on the poor plate.

"I think it's time to start being honest here. There's obviously something going on between you and that boy" she said seriously.

"There's nothing between me and him" I replied.

"You say that, but I've never seen you act like this before. You've been angry since the minute he got here."

"I'm fine. He'll be leaving in the morning so it's not a big deal."

"Maybe you should talk to him." She suggested.

"I don't need to talk to him. There's nothing left to be said between us."

"I don't think that's true. At least not for him."

"It is. Especially for him." I huffed indignantly.

"Sweetie, you didn't see the way he was staring at you during dinner." She said as a smile crept across her face.

I pursed my lips and turned my gaze out the window, not really knowing what to say. 

"Just think about it, ok" she said softly and walked out of the kitchen.

I released a heavy sigh and continued scrubbing the dirty dishes. The last thing I wanted to do right now was sit down and chat with Zuko.

Not a moment later I heard someone else walk into the kitchen. I glanced out of the corner of my eye and had to hold back a frustrated groan when I saw Zuko approaching me with his dirty plate in hand. Of course it would be him.

"Do you need any help?" He asked.

"No" I said in a clipped tone.

"Are you sure? I could dry those for you" he continued.

"I said no!" I snapped, refusing to even look in his direction.

"Toki, I'm just trying to--"

"I don't care what you're doing!" I yelled, "Just go away already!" 

"Why are you acting like this? I get that you're still mad, but this isn't like you at all!" He asked, finally getting frustrated with me. His weird calm facade was finally cracking.

"You don't know the first thing about me!" I yelled, turning a furious glare on him. "Why do you even care anyway? I'm not on your priority list remember? The only thing you care about is Aang! That's the only thing you've ever cared about!!" I said, waving my soapy hands in frustration. "If it weren't for your uncle helping me escape, I'd be trapped back in that hell hole selling myself just to survive!"

"And who do you think came up with that whole plan to begin with!?!" My eyes went wide as Zuko got in my face, his voice steadily getting louder.

"Who do you think came up with the idea to distract June with a job so we could look for an opening to save you? Who do you think stole the keys from her when she wasn't paying attention and slipped them to Uncle so he could release you?" He continued loudly, his eyes narrowed fiercely and fists clenched tightly in his familiar display of anger. "And who do you think it was that paid her off afterwards to ensure she wouldn't go looking for you again!!"

I stood frozen, staring at Zuko in shock as I tried to wrap my mind around what he had just told me. How could I possibly believe anything he had to say? Wouldn't Iroh have told me when he freed me? I had no way of knowing if any of this was true or not, but I couldn't deny the fact that June didn't come after me again. Could he be telling me the truth?

"If that's true then why didn't he just tell me that when he let me go?" I asked suspiciously.

"..." Zuko hesitated, like he was debating on whether or not he should answer me.

"What is it?" I demanded. He started this conversation, I'll be damned if he starts to clam up on me now.

"I didn't know if I wanted you to come back with us..." He answered quietly.

"You didn't want me back" I chuckled at my own stupidity. "Of course" I sighed.

"You're not so innocent in all of this either you know!" he said defensively. "I had just found out that you were lying to me! I was angry and I was so confused. I had no idea what was real and what wasn't!"

"I don't know what you want me to say" I said, staring into his eyes uncertainly.

"I don't want you to say anything. Just stop treating me like I'm the scum of the earth" He replied.

I was just opening my mouth to speak again when I heard a thud just outside the kitchen. A moment later a red faced Lee came walking in with his dirty plate and a guilty expression on his face.

"Lee, what were you doing?" I asked, already knowing the answer. He was hardly sneaky enough to eavesdrop without getting caught.

"Sorry, I was trying to wait until you guys were done" he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "It was kind of hard not to hear you though."

"Right" I rolled my eyes and took his dirty plate.

"So are you still mad at him?" Lee asked curiously. My eyes widened in surprise at his straight forward question. I glanced between the two boys who were watching me carefully, waiting for my answer.

"I'm done talking about this right now" I huffed, handing Zuko the dirty plate. "I'm going feed the pigs, finish up for me."

"Aww" I heard Lee whine as I walked out. I needed some time to process everything that had just happened.

I slowly made my way through the pig pens, dumping buckets of slop while going over everything in my mind again and again. When I was finished feeding the pigs I sat down against the wall of the barn with a heavy sigh. The strip of red silk around my left wrist caught my eye as seemed to glow in the moonlight.

"What am I doing?" I sighed heavily.

After all this time I've spent being angry at him, it felt like someone had dumped a bucket of cold water on me. Zuko had helped me. Even though he was mad at me for lying to him, he had come after me and helped me to escape. But he let me go, knowing I would hate him just because he wasn't sure if he wanted me around anymore. 

To be fair though, I know I had really put him through hell too. I mean I freaking kissed him while he thought I was a boy. That was pretty messed up on my part.

"Are you ok?" I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sound of Zuko's voice.

"You scared me!" I huffed, trying to calm my spastic heartbeat.

"Sorry" he shrugged.

"What're you doing out here?" I asked curiously.

"I'm sleeping in the barn tonight" he replied, pointing towards the barn door next to me.

"Oh..."

"Why are you sitting alone in the dark?" He asked as he slowly walked closer.

"I was thinking about things" I replied. "Can we talk?"

Zuko nodded and carefully sat down next to me. 

"I think I owe you an apology" I said softly, pulling at a frayed edge of the red cloth on my wrist. "I put you through so much back on the ship, and I never even stopped to think about how you must have been feeling."

"I get why you did it at first, but after everything that happened between us...why didn't you just tell me the truth?" 

"I wanted to." 

"So why didn't you?" He pressed.

"I never intended to stay on the ship. And I definitely never meant for anything to go as far as it did" I explained. "From the beginning my plan was to just go unnoticed until I could get off at the first mainland port, then just go start a new life somewhere else. But things kept happening and...I don't know. I don't know how things got so complicated" I huffed, running my hands through my hair. "I knew how important finding the Avatar was to you, and I knew I was a distraction. I didn't want to get in your way anymore. I was just going to keep my distance until I could leave, but that didn't go according to plan either."

"You got so mad at me, but you weren't even going to stay." he huffed.

"I know. I'm so sorry for everything I did to you Zuko." I said. He nodded and stared off into the darkness in thought. We sat in silence for a while Zuko worked through whatever was on his mind.

"What happened between us, was it even real?" He asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Of course it was real. At least for me it was" I stated. 

"Then, why don't you come with me tomorrow? We can start over--"

"I can't" I interrupted, 

"You can't, or you won't?" 

"Zuko, I finally have a place to call home. Somewhere I belong" I explained.

"Oh" he said, looking a little disappointed. 

"I'm sorry Zuko" 

"Don't be" he said with a reassuring smile. "You seem to really fit in here."

"Do I?"

"Yeah, you do" he nodded. "Are you happy here? With these people?"

"Yeah, I am." I said with a small smile. "They took me in, no questions asked. They treat me just like I'm one of their own. It's like I finally have a real family." 

"I'm glad" he said quietly, looking up at the moon. 

"Speaking of family, where is your uncle?" I asked curiously.

"I don't know" he sighed. "We parted ways a while back, I haven't seen him since."

"You got into a fight, didn't you?" 

"It doesn't matter" he said dismissively, which obviously meant yes.

"Okay" I decided to just let it go for now. "Well, it's getting late. We should probably be get some sleep" I said getting to my feet, Zuko doing the same.

"Goodnight Toki"

"Goodnight Ping" I said, laughing at the unamused look on his face.

"That's not funny" he rolled his eyes.

"Whatever you say" I said called as I walked back toward the house. 

I felt light as a feather as I prepared for bed, like a weight had been lifted off of me. Sela was right, I did need to talk to Zuko. It was freeing to finally have some closure between us so I could finally let him go. 

The next morning felt like Deja Vu as I saddled Zuko's ostrich horse in preparation for his trip.

"Thank you" Zuko said as I walked outside to meet everyone.

"No problem" I replied. 

Zuko effortlessly mounted the ostrich, all ready to leave when Sela walked over to him with a wrapped box.

"Here. This ought to get you through a few meals" she said with a motherly smile. Zuko nodded politely and put the box away in his bag. 

Suddenly the pigs started to get riled up as someone approached the farm. My stomach dropped when I realized it was the earth benders from town.

"What do you think they want?" Gansu mumbled, scowling as Gow and his men rode over to us.

"Trouble" Zuko replied tensely. 

"What do you want, Gow?" Gansu asked harshly.

"Just thought someone ought to tell you, your son's battalion got captured" Gow said with a wicked grin. "You boys here what the Fire Nation did with their last group of Earth Kingdom prisoners?"

"Dressed them up in Fire Nation uniforms and put them on the frontline unarmed, way I heard it." One of his men replied with a smirk. "Then they just watched."

"You watch your mouth!" I snapped angrily, having had enough of Gow's gloating. 

Gow growled under his breath and suddenly started toward me, only to be blocked by Zuko who immediately moved in front of me and blocked his path.

"Why bother rooting around in the mud with these pigs?" Gow asked Zuko condescendingly, then turned around and lead his men away.

"What's going to happen to my brother?" Lee asked, his voice quivering as he held back tears. I quickly moved closer and wrapped an arm around him comfortingly.

"I'm going to the front. I'm going to find Sen Su and bring him back." Gansu said, suddenly turning around and rushing to the house with Sela following right behind him.

"When my dad goes will you stay?" Lee asked, looking up at Zuko with a hopeful expression. I didn't say anything, but I knew what the answer would be. He still needed to complete his mission. 

"No" Zuko said, just like I knew he would. "I need to move on."

"Don't worry Lee. You still have me" I said with a grin, hoping to lift his spirits a little.

"Here" Zuko said suddenly, pulling something out of his bag and handing it to Lee. "I want you to have this. Read the inscription."

"Made in Earth Kingdom." Lee read aloud and I had to cover my mouth to smother a laugh.

"The other one" Zuko said, staring at me as I cleared my throat and pretended like nothing happened.

"Never give up without a fight" Lee read the other side with a hopeful smile.

By the time Lee had finished speaking Zuko was already riding away leaving a cloud of dust behind him.


	17. 17

Once Zuko's silhouette was no longer visible on the horizon Lee and I went back to the house to see if Gansu needed any help. By the time we walked inside he already had a bag on his shoulder and was headed for the door.

"Are you really going to bring him home?" Lee asked hopefully.

"Of course I will, Lee" Gansu said with a reassuring smile. "Take care of your mother while I'm gone."

"We will be fine" I said with a smile, stepping aside so Gansu could walk through the door. 

"I'll be back soon" he said with a wave.

Sela wiped a few stray tears away as we all watched Gansu leave us behind. Just like Sensu had. Just like Zuko. I sighed heavily, shaking the depressing thoughts away. Gansu wasn't leaving forever. He would be back soon with Sensu. Then things would finally go back to normal. 

After Gansu had gone, Lee and I started on our morning chores. We had only been working for a few minutes when the pigs started to get noisy again. Sela quickly came out of the house so see what all the noise was about when Lee suddenly went stiff, eyes wide.

"Mom!" He called suddenly, pointing at a cloud of dust approaching.

"Oh no" I groaned when I realized it was Gow and his thugs. Of course they would wait until Zuko and Gansu were gone to come back and try to pick a fight. Cowards.

"Lee, go in the house" Sela said, pushing Lee behind her as the group of Earth benders came to a stop before us. 

"What do you want now?" I snapped. 

"You should watch your mouth little girl, no one is around to protect you anymore!" Gow snarled as he dismounted his ostrich.

"You better not lay a hand on her!" Sela warned as Gow stepped closer.

"And just what are you gonna do about it?" He said in a menacing tone as he turned his attention to Sela.

"You leave my mom alone!" Lee yelled, running at Gow, swinging his knife wildly.

"Lee!" Sela cried as Gow snatched Lee's hand and yanked the knife away.

"You foolish boy!" Gow snarled, squeezing Lee's wrist.

"Let him go!" I warned.

"Actually, I don't think I will" he replied with an evil grin. "If the boy is old enough to fight, then he's old enough to join the army!" 

"No! Let me go!" Lee called as Gow suddenly started dragging him toward his ostrich horse.

"Get off of him!" I screamed. 

Without hesitation I ran toward Gow and jumped on him, wrapping my arm around his neck and squeezing as hard as I could. Suddenly all hell broke loose. Everyone was yelling as the other men fought to hold Lee and tried to help pull me off of their leader. Suddenly Gow shoved everyone away and threw himself backwards to the ground. My eyes went wide as we slammed against the hard dirt and all of his weight came crushing down on me. The second my arm loosened he yanked himself away and turned to me with a furious glare. I gasped for breath as I made a feeble attempt to escape but Gow immediately slammed his fist against my cheek and everything went black.

I groaned in pain as slowly I started to regain consciousness. My head was throbbing and I couldn't move my arms for some reason. I quickly opened my eyes and looked down at myself only to see a thick rope wrapped around me. I was in the middle of town, tied to a post. How did this happen?

"You just wait! I know he will come back, and when he does you better watch out!" I heard Lee say. He was tied to a post across from me. Suddenly I remembered everything that happened just before Gow knocked me out. 

"No one is coming for you, boy. Quiet down already!" Gow huffed, returning to his conversation with his men. 

"Lee" I said quietly, hoping Gow wouldn't overhear me, "what happened?"

"You're awake!" He said happily. "After Gow hit you he brought us here and tied us up. But don't worry! Mom is going to find your friend and bring him back to save us!" He stated confidently. 

"I sure hope she finds him soon" I sighed.

"Hey! There he is!" Lee said after a while. "I told you he'd come."

I released a sigh of relief as Zuko quickly dismounted his ostrich and faced Gow with a deadly glare.

"Let them go."

"Who do you think you are? Telling us what to do?" Gow laughed arrogantly.

"It doesn't matter who I am, but I know who you are" Zuko said. "You're not soldiers. You're bullies. Freeloaders, abusing your power. Mostly over women and kids. You don't want Lee in your army. You're sick cowards messing with a family who's already lost one son to the war."

"Are you going to let this stranger stand there and insult you like this?" Gow said, manipulating his men into attacking Zuko before him.

A crowd had started to form as Zuko effortlessly blocked the first man's attack. The other two men weren't much better and before I knew it, Zuko had sent all three men running away without even drawing his swords. 

Gow narrowed his eyes at Zuko and grabbed his hammers, not wasting a moment before he began his attack. Zuko knocked away rock after rock using nothing but his swords as a shield, but Gow quickly overwhelmed him. He sent a huge rock flying right into Zuko's stomach, knocking him back a few feet. He quickly recovered, readying his swords before charging forward again.

"Give him a left! A left!" I heard an old man call out from the crowd as Gow sent a barrage of large rocks flying at Zuko.

"Look out!" I cried as Gow slammed his hammers down to the ground. Suddenly a huge pillar of stone came jutting out of the dirt, slamming into Zuko and sending him flying back a few feet.

"Get up Zuko!" I whispered, biting my lip nervously as Gow approached him. He was still sprawled out on the ground from that last hit.

Just as Gow got next to him, Zuko's eyes suddenly snapped open and he sent a huge burst of flames towards Gow. An audible gasp could be heard from the crowd as the flames pushed Gow backwards. Everyone's eyes went wide as Zuko unleashed his anger in the form of relentless fireblasts. He continued to push Gow backwards before sending him flying nearly through a wall with one final blast.

"Wh--who are you?" Gow stammered, dazed from Zuko's last blow.

"My name is Zuko. Son of Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai. Prince of the Fire Nation and heir to the throne." Zuko announced, getting a little flashy with his swords. I noticed him quickly take something off of Gow before walking over to where I was still tied up.

"Showoff" I rolled my eyes as Zuko cut the thick rope holding me in place.

"Liar!" The same old man from earlier suddenly called out. "I heard of you. You're not a prince, you're an outcast! His own father burned and disowned him!" 

"Get lost old man!" I snapped angrily, and glanced at Zuko to see how he had reacted.

Zuko just ignored the old man, walking over to where Sela was untying Lee.

"Not a step closer" She said as she quickly stepped in front of him, narrowing her eyes at Zuko suspiciously.

"It's yours" Zuko said, kneeling down and holding the knife out to Lee. "You should have it." 

"No! I hate you!" Lee said harshly.

"Lee!" I started, "Why would you--"

"Not another word from you!" Sela interrupted. 

"Huh?" My eyes went wide as she turned her glare on me. 

"You knew! The whole time!" She yelled. "You knew who he was and you had the nerve to bring him into my home! Near my family!"

"She didn't know" Zuko lied as he stood up again. "I never told her who I really was."

"Liar!" Lee yelled, looking at me with watery eyes. "I heard you. During the fight, I heard you say his name." I felt my heart break when I saw how betrayed he looked. "You're one of them."

"You are no longer welcome in my home" Sela said in a deadly serious tone.

"Wait a minute" Zuko started defensively.

"Zuko, don't" I said quickly, grabbing his arm and pulling him a couple of steps back. "Don't worry about it, let's just go." 

He looked confused for a second, then seemed to understand. There was no use arguing with them. They would never trust me again after this, no matter what either of us had to say. 

"Okay" he nodded, looking back at Sela and Lee before turning around and walking away.

"I'm sorry" I said before following Zuko to his ostrich horse. 

"Are you okay?" Zuko asked, lightly stroking my bruised ckeek.

"Yeah. Let's just get away from here, okay" I sighed, wincing slightly at the contact.

He nodded and didn't say anything else as he helped me up onto the ostrich. I was glad for the silence. The reality of what had just happened was finally sinking in and I was in no mood to talk. I barely even noticed him get on behind me and steer us away from the town that I had called home. 

Home. Once again I was left without one. I had finally found the one thing I had always wanted, and it had slipped through my fingers once again. Was I doomed to never have a home of my own? Or maybe that just wasn't the place I was meant to be. Whatever the reason, I was still completely heartbroken. 

"We should stop here for the night" Zuko said, pulling the ostrich to a halt after a few hours of riding. 

He easily climbed down from the saddle and I did the same. Zuko took care of making a fire while I removed the saddle and supplies from the ostrich so it could rest too. When Zuko was done he pulled something out of his pack and sat down by the fire.

"Are you hungry?" He asked, offering me the box of food that Sela had prepared for him.

"Not really" I sighed, sitting next to him and staring into the fire.

"Are you okay?" 

"I should be asking you that. Gow really knocked you on your butt earlier" I chuckled.

"I'm serious Toki." He said looking unimpressed.

"I-...I don't know" I sighed. "I finally had a place to call home, but it's gone now. There's nothing I can do about it. The only thing I can do is keep moving forward."

"I know what you mean" he said quietly. "I'm sorry"

"Why?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"It's my fault this happened to you. That you're stuck out here with me instead of where you belong" He said.

"You tried to lie for me. You tried to help me."

"It didn't work though" he sighed. 

"What happened to you?" I decided to change the subject. Zuko needed to stop blaming himself for every little thing that goes wrong.

"What?" He asked, confused.

"How did you get here? Where's your ship?" I asked curiously.

"It's gone" he sighed. "After you...left, Zhao took my crew. He was preparing to attack the Northern Water Tribe. Then he tried to have me killed." He explained, a range of emotions playing across his face.

"How did you get away?"

"I didn't" he answered vaguely before explaining more. "He hired pirates to blow up my ship after everyone else had left. I let him go on thinking I was dead and stowed away on his ship."

"You let him take you right where you  wanted to go" I said with a grin. "But Aang is still free, so..."

"I had him" Zuko said, narrowing his eyes fiercely. "But he got away from me. Again."

"Oh. So you're still chasing after him, huh?" 

"I have no choice." Zuko replied. "It's the only way to regain my honor."

"I wasn't aware honor was something that could be taken away" I said.

"You've said that before" He huffed.

"Because it's still just as true now as it was then" I said as I laid down on the ground so I could look at the stars.

"Whatever you say" Zuko said unconvinced, and laid back next to me.

"I'm glad that the mighty prince of the Fire Nation isn't too scared to look at the stars with me anymore" I teased with a smirk, attempting to lighten the mood.

"I was never scared" Zuko said defensively.

"Right. I forgot. That definitely wasn't you that jumped up and ran away like a huge chicken the last time we did this" I chuckled.

"I didn't run away" Zuko huffed.

"Ok then, what do you call it?" 

"I was...just tired" he said lamely.

"Okay, so you're a chicken, and a bad liar" I smirked.

"It doesn't matter anymore anyway. It was a long time ago" he said.

"Okay" I said, deciding not to push his buttons and make him mad. The last thing I needed was a pissed off fire prince on my hands.

"So do you have any leads?" I asked curiously. "Or are we just going to wander around the Earth Kingdom until we find him?"

"You're coming with me?"

"Yeah, I thought so. Unless you don't want me to" I said, feeling embarrassed for just inviting myself on Zuko's trip without thinking.

"No, it's fine." He said quickly, then cleared his throat awkwardly. "I just thought you would want to find a new home soon."

"I thought I'd take you up on your offer to start over." I looked over at him and was met by those warm amber eyes. "If it's still available" I added softly.

"Okay" he nodded lightly.

"So, do you have a trail?" I asked again.

"Not yet, but I know we're close" he said confidently.

"Well, I guess we better get some sleep if we're going to catch up with him" I said and Zuko nodded in agreement.


	18. 18

Zuko:

I woke up at sunrise as always and looked around our makeshift camp cautiously. When I was satisfied that no one had come upon us while we were sleeping I sat up and stretched out my sore back. Sleeping on the ground was really starting to get old. I never thought I'd miss my small room on that old warship, but these days I would give anything for a real bed to sleep in. 

I glanced over at Toki who was curled up on the ground still sound asleep. The bruise on her cheek had gotten worse since yesterday and was now a dark purple that stood out harshly on her lightly tanned skin. My anger flared when I remembered everything that happened yesterday, but I quickly pushed it away. What's done is done. There's nothing I could do about it now, so getting angry was pointless. 

Besides, Toki had decided to come with me. Even though things were so tense between is just the other day, and even though I just had cost her the home she had made for herself, she decided to travel with me. She was going to help me. She wanted to stay with me.

No matter how I phrased it, it felt so surreal to think about. She was the girl who lied to me for months, who had me questioning everything about myself in such a way that I didn't understand, the girl that I had decided I would never seek out after everything she had put me through, and who fate had suddenly decided to thrust back into my life so unexpectedly. Even after everything that happened before, I was still so unexplainably drawn to her. I wanted her to come with me, and I would never admit it out loud, but I was really happy that things ended up the way they did.

"Stupid pigs" Toki mumbled in her sleep, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Hey, wake up" I said, gently shaking her awake.

Her round hazel eyes fluttered open and she slowly sat up. "What time is it" she mumbled.

"It's early. We need to leave soon" I said as I stood up and dusted off my clothes.

I put the saddle and supplies back on the ostrich and grabbed the box of food from my pack.

"Here" I said, handing the box to her so she could eat.

"What about you?" She asked, looking at me curiously.

"I'm fine, you eat" I said, sitting down on the ground to wait for her.

"Don't be dumb Zuko, there's plenty for us to share" she sighed, opening the box and dumping some of the food into the lid. She then handed me the rest with a look that left no room for argument.

After we finished eating we we're back on the road again. I had heard rumors that the Avatar was heading east so that's where we were going. After a few hours of riding in silence something seemed to catch Toki's attention.

"Hey, look over there" She said, pointing to a small town in the distance. "We should stop there and ask if anyone has heard anything about the Avatar."

I nodded and steered the ostrich in the direction of the town. It was even smaller than the town we had just left so I doubted these people would know anything, but I guess it didn't hurt to try.

I put my straw hat on as we rode into the town, pulling it down to help hide my scar. I wasn't too worried that someone would recognize me but it was always better to be safe than sorry. 

"We shouldn't stay too long" I said as we both dismounted the ostrich.

"Don't worry, it won't take us very long at all" she said, walking down the street with purpose.

"Where are we going?" I asked, following her since she seemed to know where we should start.

"If there's one thing I learned growing up" she said, pausing to look around before pointing to one particular building just down the street, "Drunk men are the biggest gossips in the whole world" she said walking over to the tavern with a confident grin.

"I hope you're right about this" I said, feeling uneasy as I tied the ostrich to a post and followed her inside.

The air was thick and musty as soon as we walked inside. Drunk men were laughing loudly at nearly every table and scantily clad women were walking around, serving drinks and flirting. My stomach twisted uncomfortably as I imagined Toki growing up in a place like this. What kind of life is that?

"I think we should start at the bar" she suddenly said, pointing out a couple of empty stools.

"Why there?" I asked curiously, amazed at how comfortable she was in this environment. 

"The guys at the tables are either here with friends or gambling. They're less likely to strike up a conversation with strangers. The bar is better. Plus, bartenders are the eyes and ears of the whole place." She said matter-of-factly. 

I nodded and followed her over to the bar, deciding it was better to just trust her and go along with it. She obviously was more experienced with this sort of thing than I was. We sat down and Toki took her time surveying the area. She watched each man at the bar for a few seconds before moving on to the next one.

"Those two shady looking guys at the end are out" she said quietly.

"Why?" 

"They're not drinking their drinks. They're here for something else. Probably waiting for someone to 'handle some business' if you know what I mean" she explained. "That guy there is a mess" she said, looking over at a guy on the other end. "Probably got his heart broken or something so he's drinking away his feelings. He won't be coherent enough to really tell us anything."

"So, who do you suggest?" I asked, surprised that she could tell all of that by just observing them for a few minutes.

"I'd go with those two guys over there" a new voice suddenly spoke.

We both quickly turned to face the bartender, a younger looking guy who had a huge smile on his face.

"Matsu?" Toki suddenly said with a huge grin. 

"It's good to see you too" he chuckled.

I glanced back and forth between the two, wondering how Toki knew this guy.

"You know him?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me.

"Matsu and I grew up together at the tavern. He was like a big brother to me" she explained.

"Until I turned sixteen and was thrown out on my butt with nothing but the clothes on my back" he added jokingly.

"Why would you decide to work in a place like this though? Didn't you get enough growing up?" She asked with a sour expression.

"Lack of options and a powerful need to eat" Matsu chuckled. "I already knew the business like the back of my hand so it was an easy choice."

"I would rather die" she huffed. 

"Well, to be fair, the circumstances were completely different for you. But how did you get out of there?" He asked. "Goro runs that place like a prison."

"I ran away" she said. "Disguised myself as a firenation soldier and took a job working on a ship."

"A firenation ship? You must have really been desperate to do something so dangerous" he said.

"I turned Sixteen. If I didn't do something then..." She trailed off as she watched one of the half dressed women started flirting with the extremely drunk man at the end of the bar.

"You got away though, you're free now" I said, feeling my blood boil as I pictured Toki doing the same thing as that woman.

"Yeah, you're right" she said, cheering up a little.

"But didn't Goro try to find you?" Matsu asked in disbelief.

"He did. He hired a bounty hunter to find me. But someone helped me escape" She said with a warm smile, glancing at me from the corner of her eye.

"I see" Matsu said, looking at me with a sly smile. "Well, what brings you to this dirt hole?" he asked.

"We're looking for someone" she said. "We were wondering if anyone has heard anything."

"It's possible. Who is it?" 

"The Avatar" she replied.

"The Avatar? Why you looking for him?" Matsu asked, confused.

"We have our reasons" She said dismissively. "So do you know anything?"

"Last I heard he was in Gaoling." He shrugged. "Got himself in a bit of trouble for kidnapping some nobleman's daughter."

"Gaoling. That's east of here, right?" She asked.

"Southeast I think. It was just a day or two ago so he's probably still around that area" he said.

"Thanks Matsu" she said, hopping down from the barstool.

"Woah, you're leaving already?" He asked, surprised.

"Sorry, we're kind of in a hurry" she said with a sad smile. "It was really good to see you again." 

"Yeah, you too" he mumbled dejectedly as she walked towards the door. I was about to get up when Matsu grabbed my arm lightly, stopping me from leaving.

"Take care of her okay" he said protectively. "Toki has a tendency to act without thinking and it's gotten her into bit of trouble in the past. Though I'm sure you probably already know that, judging by that huge bruise on her face" he chuckled.

I nodded knowing exactly what he was talking about, being a victim of her impulsiveness in the past. He then released my arm as the huge smile returned to his face. I got up and caught up with Toki as she walked out the door.

"What's up?" She asked as soon as we were outside.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"You got that look on your face, like you want to say something" she said knowingly.

"Not really" I shrugged. "I'm just surprised you didn't want to stay longer."

"You were the one who said we shouldn't stay long" she said in a 'duh' tone. "Besides, I would rather not stick around here. Brings back some unpleasant memories."

"Okay, Let's get going then" I said and untied the ostrich horse. 

"So are we going to Gaoling?" She asked as we rode the ostrich out of the small town.

"No" I replied. "If he is wanted for kidnapping then he wouldn't have stayed in town. We'll keep heading east and catch up with him as he leaves the area."

"Oh. Okay" she nodded and we fell into comfortable silence.

We covered a good distance by the time the sun set and I was confident that we would catch up to the Avatar soon. When it was too dark to see anymore we stopped and set up camp, making small talk as we split what was left of the food then we went to sleep so we could get an early start in the morning.

I was abruptly jerked awake by someone shaking me. "What's going on?" I asked as I sat up. It was still dark, probably a couple of hours before sunrise still.

"Zuko, get up! There's something out there" Toki said as she grabbed my hand and practically yanked me to my feet then pulled me towards the bushes.

I peeked through the bushes where she was pointing and felt my stomach drop. There was a Firenation tank train stopped in the clearing and some people were just coming out. I strained my eyes to see who it might be in the dark.

"The trail is going this way!" The most unmistakable voice suddenly spoke.

"No!" I hissed, beyond frustrated with my horrible luck.

"What? Who is that?" Toki asked looking worried as she watched the train roar to life and speed away.

"It's my sister and her friends" I said in defeat. "My father must have sent her to capture the Avatar before me."

"Well then I guess we better get going" she said, getting to her feet and walking back to camp.

"You don't really think we can out run a tank do you?" I asked in frustration as I followed her.

"Nope. But they just left a nice clear trail for us. All we have to do is follow them. We can figure out the rest once we catch up!" She said, quickly saddling the ostrich and jumping on eagerly.

I nodded, getting on the ostrich and quickly taking off after Azula's tank. I easily found the tracks and followed them in the same direction she was traveling.

"So I have a question" Toki spoke up after a while. "If your father wants you to capture the Avatar to to regain your honor, then why did he send your sister to do it?"

"I'm...sort of a fugitive of the Firenation now..." I said reluctantly.

"What? When did that happen?" She asked in disbelief, turning around to look at me.

"After the we left North Pole. My father declared Me and Uncle as traitors to the Firenation and sent Azula to arrest us."

"Wow" she mumbled, obviously holding back from saying what she was really thinking.

"It doesn't matter, I'm not going to let Azula win" I said, urging the ostrich to run faster.


	19. 19

Toki:

We rode non stop for most of the day to keep up with Zuko's sister and her friends. Zuko was determined to catch up with them and claim the Avatar as his own before his sister could. We followed them all the way to a small clearing by a river where they had suddenly decided to stop. Zuko and I quickly dismounted the ostrich horse and hid in the trees to see what they were up to.

The door on the tank train hissed loudly as it swung open and three girls in Fire Nation clothes stepped out. The leader, Azula I'm assuming based on the uncanny resemblance to Zuko, walked over to the river.

"Wads of wet fur" she said, sticking her hands in the water and pulling out a handful of white fur.

"How delightful" one of the other girls said in a monotone voice. She looked completely bored and her face held no emotions.

"Hmm? They're not wads, more like bundles. Or bunches? It's got an "uh" sound" the other girl said. She, in contrast to her friends, seemed to be very bright and perky, wearing bright pink clothes and a wide smile.

"Clumps?" Bland girl suggested.

"Clumps! They're clumps!" Perky girl cheered, throwing her arms around bland girl and squeezing her tightly.

"The trail goes this way" bland girl pointed out once she was free of the hug, looking at a trail of thick white fur on the ground. Azula looked unconvinced and inspected the rest of the clearing carefully.

"The Avatar is trying to give us the slip" she said when she noticed some trees that had been broken near the tops going in the opposite direction of the hair trail. "You two head in that direction and keep your eye out for the bison" she instructed, then turned back towards the trail of fur, "I'll follow this trail."

The other two nodded and they quickly began preparing to leave. 

"Which way do we go?" I asked Zuko in a hurried whisper.

"What do you mean? We're following Azula!" He whispered, not looking away from the clearing.

"But what if the Avatar isn't that way? He probably left the dummy trail to buy time so they could escape."

"I can't take that chance" he replied as the girls mounted their creepy looking giant lizards. He immediately started back toward the ostrich.

"Then I will" I said, stopping Zuko in his tracks.

"What?" He snapped.

"You follow Azula! I'll follow them! We can meet up back here later!" I said in a rush, then started chasing after the two girls who had already started their pursuit.

"Wait! Toki!" I heard him call but I didn't stop. I had a lot of ground to cover if I was going to keep up with the ridiculously fast lizards.

I pushed myself to run faster, faster than I ever had before, and thankfully I wasn't too far behind. My lungs were burning as I pushed myself to keep up the grueling pace.

"We just need to make it across that river!" Sokka's voice echoed through the trees as the girls, and myself, gained on them.

"Appa, just a little further!" Katara cried as the bison started taking out trees in his steadily lowering flight path.

I felt my stomach drop as a wide river came into sight and the bison quickly landed on the other side. There was no way I could stop these girls if they got across this river without me, so I pushed myself to go faster and took a leap of faith. Literally. Just as I reached the river bank I jumped, with every ounce of power I had, and launched myself onto the back of bland girl's lizard. I was lucky that it had raised itself up on it's hind legs to run across the water so I could reach it in time, but what I wasn't expecting was bland girl to be so heavily armed.

"Hey! What're you doing!" She yelled with far more emotion than I thought she was capable of expressing, and imedietley turned in her saddle to throw a handful of knives in my direction. Lucky for me she was still trying to keep ahold of the lizard's reigns to prevent being thrown from the saddle, so her aim wasn't as accurate as she was hoping. Just a second later the lizard hit solid ground and skidded to a sudden stop.

"Ahhh!" I screeched as I was thrown from the lizards back thanks to the momentum from our speed and my weak grip on the edge of saddle. I hit the ground hard, rolling to a stop several feet away. 

I struggled to my feet as fast as I could, which wasn't very fast at all apparently. The two girls already had Katara and Sokka cornered against a tree, Sokka lying on the ground helplessly.

"How ya doing?" He asked his sister lamely, distracting the girls as I snuck up behind them. 

"Well, you know!" Katara replied shakily.

"I thought when Ty Lee and I finally caught you guys it would be more exciting. Oh well, victory is boring." Bland girl mused as I picked up a discarded Water Tribe club from the ground, quickly rushing up behind them with the weapon raised to attack.

But I never got the chance. Just before I could attack, the bison suddenly swiped the girls away like nothing more than flies that had been bugging him and sent them flying into the river.

"Thanks Appa. I don't know what we'd do without you" Sokka said with a grateful smile, which was quickly replaced by a grimace when Appa licked him.

"Who are you?" Katara asked, looking at me curiously. 

"I'm Toki" I answered quickly.

"Wait a minute!" Sokka growled. "I know you! You're Zuko's pet!" Sokka yelled angrily. "What are you doing here? And why do you look like a girl now?"

"I'm NOT his pet!!" I snapped. "And I was trying to help you! Where's the Avatar?" 

"He's not here!" Sokka said defensively. "So you can go run and tell Zuko he's not getting his hands on--"

"We have to go!" I interrupted him, suddenly getting a sinking feeling in my stomach.

"We're not going anywhere with you!" He said in exasperation.

"Why? Is Aang in trouble?" Katara asked, completely disregarding her brothers protests.

"Azula went after him! And Zuko went after Azula!" I explained. 

"Who's Azula?" Sokka asked, completely missing the urgency of the situation.

"She's the leader of this whole thing! Zuko's sister!" 

"Zuko's sister!?" They both gasped, finally grasping how serious this was.

"Sokka, we have to go find Aang!" Katara cried, yanking her brother to his feet and pulling him over to the bison, helping him onto the saddle.

"Toki" Katara said hesitantly, "you can come with us too" she offered with a sweet smile.

"Thank you" I breathed a sigh of relief and followed Katara's lead, climbing onto Appa's back.

"Katara! You can't be serious!" Sokka protested.

"Sokka, she was trying to help us!" She argued, taking the reigns and calling out "Yip Yip!"

Suddenly we were soaring through the air and I quickly grabbed onto the saddle as tight as I could. I had seen the bison flying before, obviously, but riding it was a completely different story. I didn't move the entire time we we're flying, at least not until I heard Katara call out "there they are!"

I leaned over the side of the saddle just in time to see Zuko get blasted through the side of a building by a burst of blue flames.

"Zuko!" I cried as he laid on the ground, unmoving.

Katara quickly took Appa down for landing, her and Sokka rushing to Aang's aid while I went to Zuko.

"Zuko!" I called, kneeling down next to him and shaking him lightly. "Please wake up!" Suddenly someone knelt down opposite me and I looked up to see who it was. 

"General Iroh!" I released a sigh of relief at the familiar face.

He didn't reply, too focused on Zuko at the moment. He gently patted his nephew's face and a moment later his golden eyes finally opened.

"Uncle?" He groaned, grabbing his uncle's hand. 

"Get up!" Iroh said, sounding more serious than I'd ever heard him before. He nodded and quickly got to his feet.

"Thank the spirits you're okay!" I said, throwing my arms around him for a quick hug.

"Toki!" Zuko said, pulling back and fixing me with a stern look. "Stay here!"

"But I-"

"No! You don't know my sister! Just stay here!" He demanded before he and Iroh quickly ran off to rejoin the fight.

As much as it went against my nature, I listened to him and stood there, waiting impatiently as Zuko and Iroh helped the Avatar's group push Azula farther away. When everything suddenly went quiet I assumed the battle was over and quickly ran in the direction everyone else had gone.

"Well, look at this." I heard Azula say as I came to a stop a few feet away from where everyone had her cornered. "Enemies and traitors all working together. I'm done." She said, raising her hands in defeat but not looking very upset about it. "I know when I'm beaten. You got me. A princess surrenders with honor."

Almost instantly something changed in her demeanor and a vicious smile spread across her face. She fired a blast of blue fire right into Iroh's chest, instantly knocking him out.

"Iroh!" I quickly rushed to his side as everyone else simultaneously unleashed all of their power on Azula. But it was pointless, as soon as the smoke cleared we all could see that she was gone.

"Uncle!" Zuko called, rushing over and kneeling down next to me.

Aang, Katara, and Sokka all came closer looking just as worried as we were.

"Get away from us!" Zuko growled angrily.

"Zuko, I can help!" Katara offered.

"Leave!" He yelled, turning to attack them.

"Zuko stop!" I yelled, grabbing his arm and yanking him backwards as hard as I could. 

"Get off of me!" He growled, struggling against me as I kept my hold on his arm, pulling him to his feet and practically dragging him backwards. 

"Katara, please!" I begged, releasing Zuko's arm and moving in front of him so he couldn't attack her without hitting me first.

She looked at me for a minute, seeming to mull over if she wanted to risk getting attacked again, before hesitantly kneeling down next to Iroh. Zuko had gone quiet as we watched Katara carefully pull Iroh's singed clothes away from his wound. She then opened her water skin, gathering the water around her hands and gently placed them on Iroh's chest. I noticed Zuko step closer to me, watching her like a hawk as the water started to glow. 

"I've done all I can" she said, returning the water to her water skin and quickly moving away from Iroh. Zuko was instantly by his side, inspecting his uncle's wounds. 

"Thank you" I said with a grateful smile.

"You're welcome" she replied, looking at me uncertainly.

"What?" I asked, knowing she wanted to say something but was holding back.

"I just don't understand, the last time we saw you Zuko had you handcuffed to that crazy woman's shirshu" she said. "Why would you stay with him?"

"Oh, that was just a misunderstanding" I shrugged and she looked at me skeptically. 

"Katara! It's time to go!" Sokka yelled, obviously ready to get as far away from Zuko as possible.

"Zuko really isn't all that he seems" I said before she left. "I really hope you guys get to see that someday too."

She nodded, looking unconvinced, then left to meet her brother and Aang. 

I cautiously moved closer to Iroh and Zuko, kneeling next to him to see Iroh's wounds for myself. Amazingly, the worst of the damage was gone and only a patch of red sore looking flesh was left.

"We need to get him somewhere safe" Zuko said, standing up and walking away without giving me so much as a second glance.

Well damn, I've gone and pissed him off again. But he would get over it eventually. Iroh was alive and that's what was most important right now.

Zuko came back a few minutes later with our ostrich horse and what I assumed was Iroh's bag. He glanced around the town, probably looking for a house that was still intact enough for us to stay in. Too bad nearly every building had been damaged or burned down by the battle just now.

I noticed something off in the distance and realized there was a lone shack a little way outside of the town, and it looked like it was still mostly in one piece.

"How about there?" I said, pointing to the house.

Zuko just nodded and bent down to pick Iroh up. I attempted to help but Zuko blocked my path. I watched helplessly as he hooked his arms under Iroh's and slowly drug him over to the ostrich. I rushed over to the ostrich, grabbing the reigns and tugging down slightly so it would sit, then held it steady as Zuko pulled Iroh onto the saddle. 

I let Zuko take the reigns and lead the ostrich horse out of the small town as I trailed behind quietly. I could tell he was really on edge, and probably furious with me, so I decided to give him plenty of space.

When we reached the shack I stayed out of the way while Zuko got his uncle inside. Instead, I decided to check if the small well a few feet away still had any water in it. 

It seemed we had a little bit of luck on our side, there was fresh water in the well. I pulled up a bucket full of water and carried it inside.

Zuko had Iroh laid out on an old blanket, another blanket rolled up under his head as a pillow, and he was digging through Iroh's pack obviously looking for something.

"I found some water" I said softly, setting the bucket down beside him. 

"We need to bandage his wounds" Zuko said, ignoring the water as he pulled a roll of bandages from Iroh's pack. I nodded and helped lift Iroh up while Zuko wrapped the bandages around his burned chest. Once Zuko was satisfied with his work we gently laid him back down so he could rest comfortably.

"Thank you" Zuko suddenly said, taking me by surprise.

"What?"

"Thank you" he repeated. "For stopping me...and helping my uncle. If it wasn't for you, who knows what could have happened."

"It's okay. You were just upset. Don't beat yourself up over it. He is going to be fine now and that's what's important" I said with a reassuring smile.

"It's not just that" He huffed in frustration. "I couldn't beat Azula! She almost killed Uncle and I was too weak to stop her!"

"Zuko, it's not-" 

"Don't" he interrupted. "I don't need your patronage."

"I wasn't patronizing you" I huffed, wondering how long he was going to be so moody. "I was just going to say it's not that big of a deal. Everyone makes mistakes. But for now, you should just be thankful that Iroh is okay and not worry about anything else."

He didn't respond, he just sat there looking upset, so I scooted closer to him and grabbed his hand. He glanced over at me curiously and I smiled at him.

"Things are going to get better Zuko, you just have to have faith" I said, squeezing his hand reassuringly. 

"I don't need faith, I need the Avatar" he sulked.

"There will be another chance" I yawned, feeling very tired all of a sudden. The adrenaline rush from earlier had worn off and I was completely exhausted from all that running I had done earlier.

"You should get some sleep" he said.

"We both should" I said, releasing his hand and going to lay down on the other side of the room. 

Zuko hesitated for a minute before following my lead and coming to lay down too. 

"Goodnight Zuko" I said softly, staring up at the dark ceiling.

"Goodnight" he replied quietly.

I sighed softly as I replayed the days events over in my mind until I fell asleep.

I woke up wrapped in warmth, which was strange since I didn't have a blanket when I went to sleep. I slowly cracked my eyes open and blinked in surprise, not expecting to be face to face with a sleeping Zuko. How the heck?

I remembered laying down last night and thinking about everything, and I remembered going to sleep, but I definitely didn't remember migrating across the floor and latching onto Zuko. I decided I should probably get up but as soon as I tried to pull away Zuko tightened his grip on me. 

"Zuko?" I squeaked as he pulled me closer, burying his face in my hair. Apparently I wasn't the only one that liked to cuddle. 

I sighed in defeat, deciding to just let Zuko get some rest for now. Spirits knows when he would calm down enough to get decent sleep again. I closed my eyes and curled up against his chest with a slight smile and allowed his steady heart beat to lull me back to sleep.


	20. 20

A sharp pain in my cheek jerked me awake. I quickly opened my eyes and froze when I met Zuko's amber gaze.

"Sorry" he mumbled looking guilty and I realized his hand was resting lightly on my bruised cheek. "Does it still hurt?" 

"No" I lied, not wanting to ruin Zuko's strangely good mood. This was the first time I had seen him look so serene while he was awake and I was afraid it might be just a dream.

Zuko started lightly rubbing my cheek, staring at the mark with an unreadable expression. I released a sigh, relaxing against his warm hand as he slowly trailed his thumb across my cheek, willing myself not to flinch when he would touch a more sensitive area. I laid there silently, wondering what was going on in his head this morning. Wouldn't it be nice if I were a mind reader?

"Oh my, I hope I'm not interrupting anything!" Iroh's overly amused voice suddenly sounded from across the room.

"Uncle!" Zuko jerked away from me and sat up, eyes wide and face bright red. "Y-You're awake!" He stammered, scooting a few inches away from me as I sat up too.

"What did I miss?" He asked, eying the both of us curiously.

"You were unconscious. Azula did this to you. It was a surprise attack" Zuko said, ignoring the elephant hippo in the room. He then lit a small fire and set Iroh's tea pot over it.

"Somehow, that's not so surprising" Iroh mused.

"I'm glad you're okay" I said, getting to my feet and stretching my sore muscles.

"It is good to see you again Toki" he said with a wide grin as I sat down next to him and Zuko. "I must admit, I was quite surprised to see you here. How did you end up traveling with my nephew again?"

"Well, it was kind of an accident" I shrugged. "We just bumped into each other a couple of days ago." I explained, choosing to leave out a few details.

"I see, well I am glad we have the pleasure of your company once again" he said with a warm smile.

"Me too" I chuckled.

Zuko finished the tea and poured three cups, handing Iroh his first.

"I hope I made it the way you like it" he said, then handed a cup to me. 

"Good!" Iroh said, enthusiastically taking a gulp of the tea. He immediately cringed, his face scrunching up in distaste. "That was very, uhh bracing!"

I discreetly set my cup aside, not even risking it after that display just now. Zuko was hardly the tea loving savant that his uncle was. He poured his uncle another cup full of the awful tea and the second he looked away Iroh quickly dumped it out the window behind him.

"So uncle, I've been thinking. It's only a matter of time before I run into Azula again. I'm going to need to know more advanced firebending if I want to stand a chance against her. I know what you're going to say: she's my sister and I should be trying to get along with her."

"No, she's crazy and she needs to go down" Iroh said, taking both of us by surprise. He set his empty cup aside and slowly got to his feet with a look of determination. "It's time to resume your training."

I tagged along as Iroh and Zuko moved outside to do some firebending practice. Actually, lightning practice was more accurate.

Iroh gave a very lengthy speech about lightning, how it works, how to make it, and how to guide it properly. It was interesting, but I honestly didn't understand a single bit of it. I opted to sit a safe distance away and merely watch as Iroh demonstrated the proper technique to make lightning. I watched in awe as pure energy crackled around his finger tips as he moved his arms and quickly shot a huge bolt of lightning from the tips of his fingers. 

"I'm ready to try it!" Zuko said eagerly and I couldn't help but worry about him. It seemed really dangerous to mess around with lightning just to have a slight chance of beating Azula.

"Remember, once you separate the energy, you do not command it. You are simply its humble guide" Iroh said, taking a few steps back as Zuko got into his stance. "Breathe first."

Zuko took a deep breath, mimicking Iroh's movements, but no sparks appeared around his fingers. He then thrust his arms forward and was immediately blasted onto his back by a huge explosion. 

I gasped and jumped to my feet, ready to check on him to make sure he was okay but Iroh quickly held up his hand, stopping me in my tracks. I hesitantly sat back down and kept my mouth shut, not wanting to get in the way.

Zuko got to his feet, not hesitating to get back into his stance and try again. Again, he was blown off of his feet by the explosion. I bit my lip nervously as Zuko growled in frustration and got back in his stance again. And again got knocked down.

"Why can't I do it?" He yelled. "Instead of lightning, it keeps exploding in my face! Like everything always does!"

"I was afraid this might happen" Iroh sighed. "You will not be able to master lightning until you have dealt with the turmoil inside you."

"What turmoil?" Zuko snapped.

"Zuko, you must let go of your feelings of shame if you want your anger to go away" Iroh explained calmly.

"But I don't feel any shame at all! I'm as proud as ever!"

"Prince Zuko, pride is not the object of shame, but its source. True humility is the only antidote to shame." Iroh said.

"Well, my life has been nothing but humbling lately" he replied bitterly and my heart sank. 

Was he really so unhappy with the way things were? Well, obviously he was, and I couldn't really blame him. He is a prince after all. I always had to remind myself of that. He grew up in a palace, with servants and nice clothes and amazing food! Of course he couldn't possibly be happy wandering around the Earth Kingdom like a common peasant! What was I thinking?

"I have another idea. I will teach you a firebending move that even Azula doesn't know, because I made it up myself!" Iroh said with an encouraging smile.

Iroh lead Zuko over to where I was sitting, instructing him to have a seat while he went to find something. Zuko stared at his hands, avoiding eye contact with me as we waited for Iroh to come back. He must have been embarrassed that he couldn't bend the lighting, but I was honestly relieved.

"Zuko" I said, trying to get his attention, but he didn't even acknowledge that he had heard me. I rolled my eyes and grabbed his hand, holding it tightly in mine. A light blush dusted his cheeks as he glanced at me from the corner of his eye.

"Don't stress yourself out so much Zuko, I believe in you" I said with a smile.

"Thanks" he replied, looking a little less upset.

"Okay, let's get started" Iroh's voice suddenly came from behind us, startling both of us.

"How does he keep doing that?" I whispered as Iroh came to stand before us with a very long stick in his hands.

"I don't know" Zuko groaned in response.

Iroh cleared his throat, grabbing our attention before delving into another long-winded speech about the four nations. He used the long stick to draw the symbols of each nation while describing their respective characteristics.

"Why are you telling me these things?" Zuko asked. I had to admit, I was pretty curious as well. What did all of this have to do with learning a new firebending move. 

"It is important to draw wisdom from many different places. If we take it from only one place, it becomes rigid and stale" Iroh explained, drawing lines between the symbols in the dirt. "Understanding others, the other elements, and the other nations will help you become whole" he then drew a circle around them.

"All this four elements talk is sounding like Avatar stuff" Zuko said skeptically.

"It is the combination of the four elements in one person that makes the Avatar so powerful. But, it can make you more powerful too. You see, the technique I am about to teach you is one I learned by studying the waterbenders." 

Iroh gestured for Zuko to get up, then began explaining how it was supposed to work to redirect lightning. After a few minutes I was tired of just sitting around watching them "tracing their chi paths" or whatever, so I decided to go and try to find some food. It had been almost two days since I had last eaten and I was starving. 

I gathered a few supplies and headed back towards the forest. The town was probably a lost cause since it was abandoned so I quickly made my way through the empty streets. It wasn't long until I was back on the dirt path that still had clumps of thick white fur littered everywhere. It wasn't much longer before I finally reached the tree line and ventured into the forest.

I wandered around gathering different berries and nuts until I came across a river. My mouth watered at the thought of hot fish for dinner and I quickly set my things aside to look for something to fish with. I came across a long stick and sharpened the end by rubbing it against a rock. Once I was satisfied with my work I pulled off my shoes and waded I to the water.

I was thankful that I had some practice doing this after wandering around on my own for a while, but it still didn't make it an easy task. I lost track of time as I attempted to catch enough fish to feed all of us. Unfortunately by the time the sun had started setting I had only managed to catch two fish. Dark storm clouds had also started rolling in and I wasn't looking forward to getting caught in the rain so I decided to call it a day. 

Once I had my shoes back on I gathered my things and the two fish I caught and began the trip back to our camp. Unfortunately for me the rain started before I could even get out of the forest and had gotten worse by the time I made it to the abandoned town. I hurried back up the steep hill to the hut, getting completely drenched by the down pouring rain.

"Toki! Where have you been?" Iroh exclaimed as I walked into the hut, kicking off my boots so I wouldn't track mud everywhere.

"I went to find some food" I said, holding up my two fish with a triumphant smile.

"You should have said something before you left, I was concerned" Iroh said with a frown. "But I must admit I am looking forward to a hot meal!" He added with a huge grin.

"I'm sorry, you and Zuko seemed busy" I shrugged. "By the way, where is Zuko?" I asked when I noticed Iroh and I were the only ones here.

"My nephew has to deal with some things on his own right now." Iroh said vaguely, but I could sense the concern in his voice.

"He went to do something dangerous and stupid didn't he?" I huffed, knowing how Zuko could be when he wanted to prove something.

"He should be back soon" Iroh stated grimly. 

Soon was hardly an accurate statement. Several hours had passed as we waited for Zuko to come back. After a while both of us decided to just eat our fish and save some for Zuko. Iroh had fallen asleep after our meal and I had attempted to sleep but the later it got the more worried I got. I was so restless that I had began pacing back and fourth around the tiny hut, my mind jumping to all the worst conclusions. 

What if he had gotten hurt? What if he had gotten himself killed? Maybe he got caught by some earth kingdom soldiers, or worse, what if he ran into Azula again?

Just when I was on the verge of throwing myself into a full blown panic attack a shadowed figure came walking into our tiny hut. I hadn't even noticed that the fire had gone out, which made it very difficult to see in the dark.

"Toki?" Zuko's voice broke through the silence as he lit a small fire in his hand. "What're you doing pacing around in the dark?"

"Zuko" I sighed in relief, then marched over to him and punched him on the arm as hard as I could.

"Hey! What was that for?" He asked in confusion as he rubbed his arm.

"Where have you been, you jerk? We were worried sick about you!" I snapped, crossing my arms angrily.

Zuko glanced over at his snoring uncle with a skeptical face before turning back to me. "Im fine, it's no big deal" he mumbled going to relight the fire in the middle of the room.

"What were you doing out there anyway?" I asked curiously.

"Nothing" he said plainly.

"You're a horrible liar Zuko" I huffed and moved to sit down next to him by the fire. "If you don't want to tell me then that's fine, but I was really worried about you." 

"Where did you disappear to earlier?" He changed the subject.

"I went to find some food, which reminds me, we saved you some fish" I explained handing him the leftovers that we had saved for him. 

"Thanks" he said, picking at the fish as we fell into a comfortable silence. Well as silent it could be with Iroh's thunderous snoring filling the room.

"Hey can I ask you something?" I asked, finally breaking the silence after a while.

"What?"

"Earlier today you said your life has been nothing but humbling lately. I'm just a little curious, is it really that bad?" I asked as I stared at the fire, not having the guts to look him in the eye while I blatantly questioned his unhappiness.

"It's been three whole years since I was banished, and in that time I've traveled the whole world. But I miss my home" he said calmly.

"Oh" I replied, not really able to relate. "So do you really think your father will welcome you home once you capture Aang? I mean, he has labeled you and your uncle traitors to the Fire Nation so, how would that work?" 

"I'll just have reason with him and explain my side of things. I'll tell him how Zhao tried to have me killed and what really happened at the North Pole. He will understand. He has to."

"I really hope so" I said, feeling conflicted. I wanted Zuko to be happy and I wanted him to be able to go home, but at what cost? Aang was the world's last chance for peace. Could I really help Zuko destroy the world's only hope, just for the sake of his happiness? That hardly seemed like the right decision. My heart sank as I seemed to realize for the first time that I was going to have a very serious decision to make in the near future.

"What's wrong?" Zuko asked, suddenly pulling me out of my thoughts.

"It's nothing" I shrugged, forcing a smile so he wouldn't pry. Zuko and I were finally on good terms so the last thing I wanted was him questioning my loyalty and being suspicious of me again. 

"It's getting really late, we should probably get some sleep" I quickly changed the subject. 

"Yeah" He agreed.

~*~*~

Thank you everyone for all of the likes/favs/follows and all of the comments/reviews! I love hearing what you guys think, it always makes my day awesome!!!


	21. 21

Zuko was adamant that we got an early start the next morning on following the Avatar's trail. We were all squeezed onto the back of the ostrich horse, traveling North down a dirt path, at least until Iroh began groaning dramatically.

"Maybe we should make camp" Zuko sighed.

"No, please, don't stop just for me!" Iroh said, followed by more exaggerated noises.

Zuko quickly yanked on the reigns, stopping the ostrich in it's tracks. Iroh immediately jumped off and sat down on the ground, breathing a heavy sigh of relief as he held his bandaged chest.

"What's got you so worked up this morning?" I asked Iroh as Zuko and I dismounted the ostrich.

"I am an old man. I just need to rest a while" he shrugged and I eyed him skeptically. I didn't buy it for a minute. This whole scenario was way too similar to the feeble old man act he put on when we got captured by earth benders. 

Suddenly the ostrich horse started to get worked up and it looked around nervously. Yeah, why was I not surprised...

"What now" I groaned as I grabbed the reigns and rubbed the ostrich horse's head to calm him down. 

Suddenly several very intimidating looking men came out of nowhere on Komodo rhinos and circled us so there was no escape.

"Colonel Mongke! What a pleasant surprise!" Iroh said cheerfully.

"If you're surprised we're here, then the Dragon of the West has lost a few steps" the leader of the group said with a sneer.

"You know these guys?" Zuko asked his uncle in confusion as he stepped closer to me.

"Sure. Colonel Mongke and the Rough Riders are legendary. Each one is a different kind of weapons specialist" Iroh explained. "They are also a very capable singing group!" He added with a jovial smile.

"We're not here to give a concert. We're here to apprehend fugitives!" Mongke growled. In an instant each of the men had drawn their weapons and were glaring at either Zuko or Iroh.

"Stay close to me" Zuko whispered, eying each of the men warily.

"Are you crazy? They're after you two, not me! If I stay near you I'll just be in the way!" I replied quietly while Iroh babbled on about tea.

"Fine" Zuko growled, thankfully seeing the reason in my argument.

"Enough stalling!" The colonel suddenly yelled. "Round 'em up!"

The second the men began attacking I ducked and ran, dodging stray fireballs and weapons as I escaped the fight. Iroh and Zuko quickly got the upper hand on their opponents, but they weren't going to give up without a fight, and Iroh was still weakened from his wound. Iroh saw an opening and jumped onto the back of the ostrich horse, commanding it to run as fast as it could. Zuko effortlessly jumped onto the saddle behind him as they continued in my direction with no indication of slowing.

"Wait, slow down!" I called nervously as they approached, but they didn't listen. 

"Jump!" Zuko commanded as they came upon me. I didn't have any time to think, so I jumped. 

Zuko caught my hand and hooked his arm around my waist, knocking the wind out of me as he pulled me onto the saddle in front of him. He wrapped his arm around me to keep me from falling off of the ostrich horse as Iroh urged it to run faster.

"It's nice to see old friends" he said cheerfully, as if they didn't just almost get killed by said 'old friends'.

"Too bad you don't have any old friends that don't want to attack you" Zuko snapped, tightening his grip around my waist to help keep me steady since I was sitting sideways.

"Hmm...Old friends that don't want to attack me" Iroh mumbled thoughtfully.

"Iroh, why didn't you tell us we were about to be attacked?" I questioned. "We could have been more prepared!" 

"What? How could I possibly know that we were about to be attacked?" He asked, feigning ignorance.

"You're just as bad at lying as Zuko is!" I grumbled in frustration causing Iroh to burst out laughing. I rolled my eyes and decided to just let it go. Iroh was a mystery and I would probably never understand what he was thinking.

After a while of running Iroh finally felt we had put enough space between us and the rough riders for us to slow down again. I was thankful for the more leisurely pace considering the whole time we had been running I felt like I was on the verge of falling right off of the saddle. Not that Zuko would allow that to happen with his iron grip on my waist. I was seriously going to have a bruise if he didn't loosen up a bit.

"Where are we going Uncle?" Zuko asked, as we approached a run down little town just at the edge of the desert.

"We are going to get some help. At the rate we're going we will never make it through the Earth Kingdom without getting caught" Iroh explained.

"Misty Palms Oasis" I read the weathered sign as we came to a stop near the front of the town, though it was so tiny and run down I wondered if it could even be considered as such. "Where are we going to find help here?" I asked as Zuko and I dismounted the ostrich and Iroh did the same.

"With an open mind one can find an ally even in the most unlikely of places" he said with a smile, then lead us into one of the run down looking buildings.

"No one here is going to help us. These people just look like filthy wanderers" Zuko huffed and I quickly elbowed him in the side and gave him a look.

"What was that for" Zuko hissed, rubbing his side.

"Could you be any more insulting?" I snapped. "Despite what you might think, you don't have to make enemies everywhere you go!" 

"What are you talking about?" He asked. "I didn't insult anyone" He said, clearly not noticing the glares we were getting after his outburst.

"Ah, this is interesting. I think I've found our friend" Iroh suddenly cut in, leading us over to an old man sitting at a pai sho table.

"You brought us here to gamble on Pai Sho?" Zuko asked confused as we all sat down around the table.

"I don't think this is a gamble" Iroh said with a grin.

I tuned out the old men yammering on about their game as I looked around cautiously. Most of the people seemed to have gone back to their conversations, except for two men in the corner who were watching us like hawks. My stomach turned nervously as they talked quietly with each other, neither of them looking away for even a second.

"What are you old gasbags talking about?" Zuko snapped, pulling my attention back to the two old men in front of us who had played their tiles in a pattern to be shaped like a flower.

"I always tried to tell you that Pai Sho is more than just a game." Iroh shrugged.

"I'm not waiting all night for these geezers to finish yapping!" The bigger of the two creepy guys suddenly yelled. "It's over! You two fugitives are coming with me!"

"I knew it! You two are wanted criminals with a giant bounty on your heads!" Iroh's friend suddenly yelled as he jumped to his feet.

"I thought you said he would help!" Zuko growled and he stood in front of me and Iroh defensively. 

"He is. Just watch" Iroh countered with a pleasant smile.

"You think you're going to capture them and collect all that gold?" Iroh's friend yelled loudly, catching the attention of everyone in the room.

Almost instantly the whole place was in an uproar. The men were all fighting amongst themselves which gave us the perfect opportunity to escape. 

"It is an honor to welcome such a high-ranking member of the Order of the White Lotus" the old man gushed as we followed him into his flower shop. "Being a Grand Master, you must know so many secrets." He was practically swooning as he lead us to a door in the back of the shop.

"Now that you played Pai Sho, are you going to do some flower arranging, or is this club going to offer some real help?" Zuko interrupted impatiently.

"You must forgive my nephew. He is not an initiate and has little appreciation for the cryptic arts" Iroh said as he knocked on the door.

A small peep hole opened at the top of the door and a guy peeked through and basically asked for the password. Iroh answered him and was immediately let inside but as we tried to follow the door was slammed in our faces.

Iroh peeked through the small opening "I'm afraid it's members only. Wait out here." Then quickly closed it again.

"Seriously? What're we supposed to do out here?" Zuko huffed.

"I'm gonna look around" I shrugged, deciding it was just a waste of energy to get frustrated with Iroh at this point. He was truly a man of many mysteries.

"What's there to look at? We're surrounded by a bunch of stupid flowers!" He crossed his arms and glared at the floor.

"First of all, flowers aren't stupid, they're beautiful!" I said as I walked through the room, admiring the surprisingly diverse collection. "Secondly, you need to relax. Iroh was right, the firenation is practically hunting you two down like the Avatar right now. We need these people's help if we want to get anywhere."

"Don't remind me" he grumbled, plopping down on the floor beside the forbidden door looking defeated.

I sighed sadly and sat down next to him, trying to think of something to distract him from his troubles. "Hey Zuko, have you ever heard the story of Omashu?" 

"No" he said obviously uninterested, but I was determined to distract him so he would stop pouting.

"Well, a long time ago there was a woman and a man from two different Earth Kingdom villages who--"

"I didn't say I wanted to hear about it" he interrupted.

"Shush! I'm talking!" I said before continuing my story. "Anyway, they were in love with each other, but they couldn't be together because their villages were at war. So every day they had to meet in secret on top of the mountain that divided their two villages."

"If they couldn't be together because of their villages then why didn't they just run away together?" Zuko interrupted again.

"I don't know, maybe they didn't want to disappoint their families or something?" I shrugged. "So, the two lovers spent a lot of time on the mountain and eventually learned Earthbending by watching the badger moles that lived on the mountain. They became the first known earthbenders, and they used their newfound skills to build elaborate tunnels through the mountain so they could meet in secret without fear of being caught. Anyone who tried to follow them would be lost forever in the labyrinth."

"This is ridiculous, what kind of made up story is this?" He huffed. 

"Zuko" I said in a warning tone, grabbing his hand and squeezing tightly, "if you interrupt me again I swear I'll break your fingers!" I said with a smile, refusing to release his hand. 

"Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, so, they continued to meet every day until one day when the man never showed up. He was killed in the war between the two villages. The woman was completely heartbroken. She was so devastated by the loss of her love that she unleashed a terrible display of her earthbending power. She could have destroyed them all, I know I would have, but instead she declared the war over. The two villages finally set aside their differences and came together. They helped her build a new city where they would live together in peace. The woman's name was Oma and the man's name was Shu, so the great city was named Omashu as a monument to their love." I finished the story with a smile. 

Zuko on the other hand, looked less than happy. "What was the point of that?" 

"It was supposed to distract you and make you feel better" I said. 

"Well, it didn't work" he stated.

"Oh well, I tried" I shrugged.

"You don't always have to try and make me feel better you know" he mumbled.

"Would you rather I didn't?" I asked curiously.

"...No" 

"Well okay then" I said with a warm smile. "You're just going to have to get used to my constant attempts to cheer you up from now on."

"You make it sound like I'm always upset." He said with a grumpy frown.

"Have you met yourself?" I snickered. "You wouldn't be Zuko if you weren't mad about something."

"Gee thanks..." He rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry, I'm used to it by now so it doesn't matter to me. I like you just the way you are." 

Zuko's cheeks flushed a bright pink and he quickly shifted his gaze toward a flower pot on the other side of the room. It took me a minute to realize what I had said and I felt my cheeks get warm also. Zuko continued looking anywhere but at me so I shrugged it off. I kind of enjoyed seeing him so flustered, it was kind of adorable actually, so I decided to just roll with it. I leaned up against him and laid my head on his shoulder, desperately trying not to laugh when he went completely rigid. I could have sworn he was even holding his breath. Was I completely evil for enjoying his discomfort so much? Probably. 

After a few minutes Zuko finally relaxed, probably realizing I wasn't going to move any time soon. We sat in comfortable silence for a while as we waited for Iroh to finish whatever he was doing in the secret room. It felt like we had been waiting for hours and at some point I must have fallen asleep because I was jerked awake by the sound of Zuko's voice.

"What's going on? Is the club meeting over?" He asked, getting to his feet when he realized I wasn't using him as a pillow anymore.

"Everything is taken care of. We're heading to Ba Sing Se" Iroh explained, immediately catching my attention as I stood up.

"Ba Sing Se? Why would we go to the Earth Kingdom capital?" Zuko asked.

"The city is filled with refugees. No one will notice three more" Iroh's friend piped up.

"We can hide in plain sight there. And it's the safest place in the world from the Fire Nation. Even I couldn't break through to the city" Iroh said in amusement.

"Ba Sing Se? But it's nearly impossible to get in there. You have to have all kinds of documentation to even get on the ferry."

"Not to worry child" Iroh's friend said "we will have all the proper paperwork momentarily."

Almost as if on cue a young man came through the front door with a troubled expression on his face. "I have the passports for our guests, but there are two men out on the streets looking for them."

"Wow those two sure don't give up easy" I said as we peeked at the same two men from earlier from the safety of the flower shop. 

"I have an idea" Iroh's friend said, suddenly walking around a shelf full of flowers. A moment later he came back pulling a cart that had two very large flower pots on it. "Quickly, get inside" he instructed.

Iroh didn't hesitate, immediately climbing onto the cart. He squeezed himself into the narrow opening of the pot then ducked out of sight. The old man then covered the opening with a fake flower arrangement and turned his attention to Zuko. He surprisingly didn't complain and just did what he needed to do. Once Zuko was inside the other pot the old man turned to me. "You too" he said pointing to the pot.

"What, really? But I'm not a wanted fugitive..."

"But you have been seen traveling with them. In you go" he urged.

I sighed, not really able to argue with that logic and climbed onto the cart. I carefully stepped into the pot making sure I didn't accidentally step on Zuko, then squeezed myself in with him. It was cramped and uncomfortable and I pretty much had to sit in Zuko's lap because there just wasn't enough room for me to sit anywhere else.

We stayed silent as the old man covered the opening of the pot, blocking out almost all of our light and a moment later we felt the cart start to move. I wasn't sure how long we we're going to be stuck inside these stupid flower pots but I hoped it wouldn't be too long. Zuko seemed really uncomfortable and I wasn't sure if it was the confined space or the fact that I was squishing him but I was starting to get a little self conscious. I mean I know I wasn't super skinny anymore, but I didn't think I was that heavy either.

Thankfully the ride didn't last too long and just a few short minutes later we were allowed out of the uncomfortable flower pots. We were met just outside of the city by a couple of men who were wearing strange beetle shaped helmets. They looked a little suspicious, but the young man who had brought us here handed them a sack of money and they immediately loosened up.

"The beetle-headed merchants will get you to Ba Sing Se safely" the young man said as he grabbed the handle of his cart and began walking away.

"Alright, let's get moving!" One of the merchants said, gesturing towards a couple of giant rhinoceros beetles a few feet away.

I immediately stopped in my tracks as I eyed the beetles nervously. They really wanted us to ride on those things? They were even bigger than Komodo rhinos! "You know what, I think I'll stay here..." I said with a shaky voice.

"You can't be serious" Zuko deadpanned.

"There's nothing to be afraid of" Iroh said encouragingly as he climbed onto one of the back of one of the beetles behind the merchant who was controlling it.

"It's fine, I'll just walk and catch up with you two later" I said, backing up a few steps.

"Don't be ridiculous, we're not leaving you behind!" Zuko said, grabbing my hand and pulling me towards the giant beetle.

"Why do you always have to push me so far out of my comfort zone?" I huffed as Zuko lifted me onto the back of the beetle then got on behind me.

"Because you're being ridiculous. What are you so afraid of?" He asked, holding onto me as the merchants snapped the reigns and both beetles took off at an alarmingly fast rate.

"Are you kidding? These things are huge! Do you know how easy it would be for it to kill us? All it takes is one wrong move and bam! We'd be squashed into the dirt like it was nothing!" I finished my rant, not missing the amused expression that made it's way onto Zuko's face.

"Why weren't you afraid of the ostrich horse?" He countered.

"They're so much smaller and more manageable. They can hardly be compared to these death monsters!" 

"That doesn't make any sense" he rolled his eyes at me.

"It does to me" I sighed in frustration and turned my attention toward the desert scenery.


End file.
